Demystifying E407 and E407a Additives (Carrageenans) Through Their Gastronomic Alchemy: A Contribution to Increase Consumer Sovereignty

Food waste has been recognized as an environmentally damaging practice that is ethically wrong and does not contribute to sustainable development. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, one-third of the food produced each year for human consumption is wasted. The u...

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Main Authors: Carla Matos, Manuela M. Moreira, Hélio Loureiro, Lígia Rebelo Gomes
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2024-12-01
Series:Gastronomy
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2813-513X/2/4/14
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author Carla Matos
Manuela M. Moreira
Hélio Loureiro
Lígia Rebelo Gomes
author_facet Carla Matos
Manuela M. Moreira
Hélio Loureiro
Lígia Rebelo Gomes
author_sort Carla Matos
collection DOAJ
description Food waste has been recognized as an environmentally damaging practice that is ethically wrong and does not contribute to sustainable development. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, one-third of the food produced each year for human consumption is wasted. The use of additives can help to prevent food waste if they can overcome the problem of the limited supply of natural ingredients, increase the shelf life of food, and simplify cooking procedures. Therefore, the demystification of food additives, as well as their importance and uses, will help to increase consumers’ consciousness and enable them to make informed choices. This work reviews the physical/chemical properties of carrageenans, which are widely used as thickening and stabilizing agents in a wide range of everyday foods. This critical revision was made through bibliographic searches between January and May 2024 in the PubMed and Web of Science databases. The following keywords, in English, were used: “carrageenan*” and “additive*”, combined with the Boolean operator “AND”. Depending on the field of knowledge, another keyword was added to the search, such as, for instance, “chemical composition*”, “physical properties*”, “reology*”, “legal framework*”, “extraction*”, or “molecular cuisine*”. Additionally, the search allowed us to highlight how carrageenans can contribute to a better result in the final preparation of food and how they can be used in modern cuisine using simple molecular gastronomy recipes.
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spelling doaj-art-1e41a967e86f4cecb2fbce79d0b1c6f62025-01-24T13:33:42ZengMDPI AGGastronomy2813-513X2024-12-012419121410.3390/gastronomy2040014Demystifying E407 and E407a Additives (Carrageenans) Through Their Gastronomic Alchemy: A Contribution to Increase Consumer SovereigntyCarla Matos0Manuela M. Moreira1Hélio Loureiro2Lígia Rebelo Gomes3FP-I3ID, Instituto de Investigação, Inovação e Desenvolvimento Fernando Pessoa, Universidade Fernando Pessoa, Praça de 9 de Abril 349, 4249-004 Porto, PortugalREQUIMTE/LAQV, ISEP, Polytechnic of Porto, Rua Dr. António Bernardino de Almeida, 4249-015 Porto, PortugalHL Produções, Rua do Lugarinho 324, 1° Esquerdo, 4250-267 Porto, PortugalREQUIMTE/LAQV, ISEP, Polytechnic of Porto, Rua Dr. António Bernardino de Almeida, 4249-015 Porto, PortugalFood waste has been recognized as an environmentally damaging practice that is ethically wrong and does not contribute to sustainable development. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, one-third of the food produced each year for human consumption is wasted. The use of additives can help to prevent food waste if they can overcome the problem of the limited supply of natural ingredients, increase the shelf life of food, and simplify cooking procedures. Therefore, the demystification of food additives, as well as their importance and uses, will help to increase consumers’ consciousness and enable them to make informed choices. This work reviews the physical/chemical properties of carrageenans, which are widely used as thickening and stabilizing agents in a wide range of everyday foods. This critical revision was made through bibliographic searches between January and May 2024 in the PubMed and Web of Science databases. The following keywords, in English, were used: “carrageenan*” and “additive*”, combined with the Boolean operator “AND”. Depending on the field of knowledge, another keyword was added to the search, such as, for instance, “chemical composition*”, “physical properties*”, “reology*”, “legal framework*”, “extraction*”, or “molecular cuisine*”. Additionally, the search allowed us to highlight how carrageenans can contribute to a better result in the final preparation of food and how they can be used in modern cuisine using simple molecular gastronomy recipes.https://www.mdpi.com/2813-513X/2/4/14food additivesE407carrageenansmolecular gastronomy
spellingShingle Carla Matos
Manuela M. Moreira
Hélio Loureiro
Lígia Rebelo Gomes
Demystifying E407 and E407a Additives (Carrageenans) Through Their Gastronomic Alchemy: A Contribution to Increase Consumer Sovereignty
Gastronomy
food additives
E407
carrageenans
molecular gastronomy
title Demystifying E407 and E407a Additives (Carrageenans) Through Their Gastronomic Alchemy: A Contribution to Increase Consumer Sovereignty
title_full Demystifying E407 and E407a Additives (Carrageenans) Through Their Gastronomic Alchemy: A Contribution to Increase Consumer Sovereignty
title_fullStr Demystifying E407 and E407a Additives (Carrageenans) Through Their Gastronomic Alchemy: A Contribution to Increase Consumer Sovereignty
title_full_unstemmed Demystifying E407 and E407a Additives (Carrageenans) Through Their Gastronomic Alchemy: A Contribution to Increase Consumer Sovereignty
title_short Demystifying E407 and E407a Additives (Carrageenans) Through Their Gastronomic Alchemy: A Contribution to Increase Consumer Sovereignty
title_sort demystifying e407 and e407a additives carrageenans through their gastronomic alchemy a contribution to increase consumer sovereignty
topic food additives
E407
carrageenans
molecular gastronomy
url https://www.mdpi.com/2813-513X/2/4/14
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