• Question: *Star question* My mother says that food was more natural and less processed when she was a child, is this true? And if so, in what ways has food manufacturing changed? - Deidre V B, live chat

    Asked by on 3 Jul 2020. This question was also asked by .
    • Photo: Azarmidokht Gholamipour-Shirazi

      Azarmidokht Gholamipour-Shirazi answered on 3 Jul 2020:

      Hi David
      From a natural science perspective, naturalness certainly does not mean that food is less risky, healthier, or tastier. Not all processed food is a bad choice. Some foods need processing to make them safe, such as milk, which needs to be pasteurised to remove harmful bacteria. Additives such as emulsifiers preserve the texture of foods, such as preventing peanut butter from separating into solid and liquid parts. Other functions of processing include delaying the spoilage of food; preserving desirable sensory qualities of food (flavour, texture, aroma, appearance); and increasing convenience in preparing a complete meal.

Comments

  • Photo: Suwanie

    Suwanie commented on :

    I think your mother is right. Following on from Ms. Gholamipour-Shirazi’s answer, a lot of processing is done out of necessity and safety. As the world has progressed into having more intricate supply chains, food can travel and get to us from further and further away, thus requiring some additional processing to ensure it’s longevity. The world main exporter of peanut butter is the US. These jars normally sit on a truck, then a ship for several weeks before ending up on our shelves in the UK.

    Your mother will therefore also hopefully agree that we have a much larger variety of food available to us than when she was younger, avocadoes from Mexico, bananas from Chile – most of which require some preservatives to make sure they don’t over ripen or rot before they get to your fruit bowl.

    Dried fruit is a great example too. Dried fruit is normally sprayed with a small amount of sulphites to make sure it doesn’t go bad before consumed. A lot of these preservatives are harmless to humans in such trace levels. They ensure that the dried apricots all the way from Turkey (for example) arrive in good condition to your local Sainsburys.

    Food scientists spend a lot of time and research ensuring that whatever goes into our food is safe to eat and will not cause any lasting damage to us.