1. Purpose and testing needs of Food Additives:

According to Vietnamese standard TCVN 5660:2010 (CODEX STAN 192-1995, Rev.10-2009) has defined: “Any substance that is not itself generally used as a food or is not used as a characteristic ingredient of a food, whether or not the additive has nutritional value. These substances are intentionally added to food for technological purposes (including to improve organoleptic properties) during production, processing, handling, packaging, transport, or storage (directly). or indirectly) to produce the desired result for a food or by-product that becomes an ingredient in the food or affects certain properties of the food. The term does not include contaminants or substances added to food to maintain or improve the nutritional quality of food.

The correct use of food additives will bring positive values:

• • Create a variety of products that suit the preferences and tastes of consumers.
  • Maintain quality integrity from production, storage, and transportation of food until use.
  • Create ease in food production and processing and increase commercial value, increasing competitiveness in the market.
  • Extend the shelf-life of food.

Besides the positive values, there are still dangers if using food additives in the wrong dosage, especially those that are not allowed to be used in food will cause harm to health:

• If overdose is allowed, it will cause acute poisoning for consumers
• Even if used in small doses, regularly, and continuously, some food additives accumulate in the body, causing long-term damage and chronic poisoning for customers. For example: If fenugreek is absorbed in low doses for a long time, fenugreek will accumulate in the body, causing chronic poisoning, affecting the digestive system, liver, and kidneys, and hindering the absorption of nutrients, causing anorexia and weakness in the body.
• Risk of causing tumor formation, cancer, gene mutation, teratogenicity, especially synthetic additives.
• Risks affecting food qualities: destroying nutrients, vitamins, etc.

Therefore, the use of food additives must be strictly controlled and follow the provisions of the law. Currently, in Vietnam, the Ministry of Health has issued Circular 24/2019/TT-BYT stipulating the management and use of food additives for the right food subjects and the dosage does not exceed the safe limit for food. permission.

For food additive materials, the Ministry of Health has issued 23 Vietnamese standards stipulating technical requirements, including:

• QCVN 4-1:2010/BYT: QCVN on flavor enhancers
• QCVN 4-2:2010/BYT: QCVN on wetting agents
• QCVN 4-3:2010/BYT: QCVN on foaming agents
• QCVN 4-4:2010/BYT: QCVN on anti-caking agents
• QCVN 4-5:2010/BYT: QCVN on color retainers
• QCVN 4-6:2010/BYT: QCVN on antioxidants
• QCVN 4-7:2010/BYT: QCVN on antifoam
• QCVN 4-8:2010/BYT: QCVN on synthetic sweeteners
• QCVN 4-9:2010/BYT: QCVN on solidifying agent
• QCVN 4-10:2010/BYT: QCVN on color products
• QCVN 4-11:2010/BYT: QCVN on acidity regulators
• QCVN 4-12:2010/BYT: QCVN on preservatives
• QCVN 4-13:2010/BYT: QCVN on stabilizers
• QCVN 4-14:2010/BYT: QCVN on metal complexing agents
• QCVN 4-15:2010/BYT: QCVN on powder treatment agent
• QCVN 4-16:2010/BYT: QCVN on fillers
• QCVN 4-17:2010/BYT: QCVN on propellants
• QCVN 4-18:2011/BYT: QCVN on starch products
• QCVN 4-19:2011/BYT: QCVN on enzymes
• QCVN 4-20:2011/BYT: QCVN on polishes
• QCVN 4-21:2011/BYT: QCVN on thickeners
• QCVN 4-22:2011/BYT: QCVN on emulsifiers
• QCVN 4-23:2011/BYT: QCVN on foaming agents

2. Analytical device:

To promptly meet the needs of customers and improve the quality of food additive testing, TSL has equipped with modern and synchronous analytical equipment:

• Devices measuring physical parameters: pH, Kjeldalh nitrogen distillation system.
• Molecular absorption spectrophotometer (UV-Vis).
• Ion chromatography (IC) system.
• Liquid chromatography system with probes (HPLC/DAD/FLD, UPLC/DAD/FLD/RID) and liquid chromatography coupled mass spectrometry (LC/MSMS).
• Gas chromatography systems (GC/FID/ECD) and gas chromatography coupled mass spectrometry (GC/MSMS).
• Atomic absorption spectrophotometer (AAS) system.
• Atomic emission spectrometer system (ICP – OES) and ICP – MS system.

3. Analytical method:

• All analytical procedures used for testing at TSL refer to the standard methods of Vietnam and common standards in the world such as TCVN, QCVN, AOAC, ISO, JECFA, Codex… and all of these processes are surveyed and validated in accordance with ISO 17025.
• All methods are tested to assess staff skills, participate in inter-departmental comparisons and implement domestic and international PT programs.
• The majority of analytical methods are accredited to ISO 17025 by AOSC.