Institute of Food Technologists Releases Educational Toolkit to Address Confusion Over Food Additives and Preservatives

CHICAGO – March 28, 2024 – The Institute of Food Technologists (IFT), a nonprofit scientific organization with global members spanning academia, government, and industry, has released an educational toolkit to help address confusion over food additives and preservatives in the production of foods. The Food Additives Toolkit covers critical information on additives and preservatives, including the history surrounding food additives and preservatives; use cases and key benefits including ensuring food safety, reducing food waste, and enriching nutrition; concerns such as chemical-sounding names, public health, and emerging science; as well as the regulatory landscape both nationally and internationally.

“Food additives not only help improve shelf life and reduce microbiological growth but help ensure a safe and affordable food supply while also reducing food loss and waste. But as the addition of these ingredients has increased over the years, so has confusion, leading states to propose legislation to ban certain food additives in conflict with federal regulations,” said IFT Chief Science and Technology Officer Bryan Hitchcock. “This toolkit is such a valuable resource as it provides science-based, factual information at a time when misinformation is rampant.”

This toolkit is the latest in a series of educational tools IFT has developed around food additives, including hosting a webinar in February 2024 on how the state-level food additives ban will impact the food industry as well as creating an IFT members-only 2024 Additives Overview that shares crucial information about many additives being considered for those state-level bans, including titanium dioxide, brominated vegetable oil, potassium bromate, and Red dye No. 3. This resource also includes current regulatory status, relevant scientific studies, commonly used alternatives, and additional reading for each of the additives included.

To download the overview, go to 2024 Additives Overview.

IFT has also released a special collection of papers that dives into food additives and preservatives from its scientific journals, Comprehensive Reviews in Food Science and Food Safety and Journal of Food Science, and will also be hosting a webinar titled “An Introduction to FDA’s Food Ingredient Regulatory Programs” on April 2, 2024, that will educate attendees on the FDA’s regulatory pathways. Featuring FDA Regulatory Review Specialist Katie Overbey, PhD, MS, the webinar will cover food and color additive petitions, as well as GRAS (Generally Recognized As Safe) chemicals. Overbey will share essential information about determining the regulatory status of ingredients, saving valuable time and money when formulating new products.

To register for the upcoming webinar, go to An Introduction to FDA's Food Ingredient Regulatory Programs - Live Webinar.

To access the toolkit, complete the form on Food Additives Toolkit.

About Institute of Food Technologists

The Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) is a global organization of over 11,000 individual members from more than 100 countries committed to advancing the science of food. Since 1939, IFT has brought together the brightest minds in food science, technology and related professions from academia, government, and industry to solve the world’s greatest food challenges. IFT works to ensure that its members have the resources they need to learn, grow, and innovate to advance the science of food as the population and the world evolve. IFT believes that science and innovation is essential to ensuring a global food supply that is sustainable, safe, nutritious, and accessible to all. For more information, please visit ift.org.

Media Contact

Dennis Van Milligen
Director, Public and Media Relations
Institute of Food Technologists
630-853-3022
[email protected]