Contents
Sugar color, which is also called caramel or food additive E150, is essentially burnt sugar, and has been known to mankind since the time when, in fact, sugar began to be produced. It was subjected to heat treatment, obtaining, depending on its degree, either a soft caramel mass or a solid substance with a characteristic taste. It was the coloring properties of the substance that were discovered a little later, and from about the middle of the 19th century they began to be used in food production. And today the food industry uses caramel “E150” to obtain the appropriate coloring of food.
Methods for obtaining the additive, its chemical properties
The substance is very easy to obtain at home – ordinary sugar, along with water, is added to a saucepan and dissolved over low heat. If desired, you can add citric acid or lemon juice. The longer the mixture is kept on the stove, the more bitter and dark the caramel will be. The sugar color obtained in this way can be dissolved in water, while it acquires a brown or dark brown tint. The resulting syrup can tint a drink or pastries.
For industrial purposes, the substance is synthesized from glucose, fructose, malt syrup or sucrose.
According to its chemical structure, the E150 additive belongs to natural heteropolymer pigments with a complex structure.
The substance can be in a solid, thick or liquid state: in the form of a powder, granules, syrup or liquid solution. Coloring – beige, yellow-brown or dark brown. Sugar color or caramel has a characteristic smell of burnt sugar.
The additive has a high resistance to temperature and light effects, as well as to reactions with acids.
The melting points of sugar color depend on what feedstock it was obtained from: 145-149 degrees Celsius for glucose, 98-102 degrees for fructose, 160-185 degrees for sucrose, and, accordingly, the same melting parameters for caramel, made from these ingredients.
In addition to the main component, acetic, sulfuric, phosphoric, citric acids, ammonium, sodium, calcium and potassium alkalis can be added to caramel.
In addition to solubility in water, the substance has another parameter: the degree of solubility in ethanol and fats.
A reservation should be made at this point – the fact is that several varieties of caramel are hidden under the designation “E150”, since the method of its preparation may include the addition of acids, alkalis, ammonium salts, sodium and potassium.
Thus, they distinguish:
- simple caramel (E150a);
- caramel synthesized using alkaline sulfite technology (E150b);
- caramel obtained by ammonia technology (E150c);
- caramel, which is made using ammonia-sulfite technology (E150d).
And if the first type, 150a, is insoluble in fats, then all other varieties are insoluble in alcohols. These characteristics directly affect in which products which type of caramel can be used.
Basically, the substance is used as:
- dye (changes the color of the product, gives it more saturation);
- emulsifier (in soft drinks prevents precipitation and turbidity).
Industrial applications
The main “consumer” of sugar color is the food production industry. Food additive E150 can be found in various products. 150a is found in:
- black bread, dough and pastries;
- dairy products;
- confectionery;
- beer, cognac, liqueurs, whiskey.
150b is used to make spirits and soft drinks. 150s – an ingredient for protein-containing drinks, sauces and beer. 150d is used in sweet sodas such as Coca-Cola, spirits, pet food. In addition, sugar color is a component of dry broths, canned meat, sausages and sausages.
The light-shielding properties of the substance do not allow food and drinks to oxidize; in non-alcoholic products, sugar color does not allow the appearance of flakes and sediment.
The effect of the supplement on human health
Food coloring E150 is approved for use in all countries of the world. There are no strict prohibitions and restrictions on this matter, however, in the USA there is a requirement for the E150d subspecies – its presence in the composition of the product must be indicated.
As for the benefits of eating sugar color, scientists today do not have any confirmed data. And the popularity and widespread use of the substance is due to the almost complete harmlessness to the human body. The possible harm from it is the same as from regular sugar – it can provoke allergic reactions and is contraindicated for diabetics. For overweight people and problems in the work of the gastrointestinal tract, it is better to limit the use of caramel and products with it in the composition. The danger in the composition of the additive may rather be residual traces of acids, alkalis and salts.
There is information that the type of E150d dye is a carcinogen, and in certain quantities provokes the appearance of malignant tumors, but science has no official confirmation of these data.
The sugar color food additive is perhaps one of the most ancient colorants and sweeteners known to man. From the very moment sugar began to be produced, man began to study its properties and tried to heat it, resulting in caramel. A simple and inexpensive substance of natural origin could not go unnoticed by food manufacturers. Already in the 19th century, when food began to be produced in factory conditions, the dye “sugar color” began to be used first in confectionery, later in drinks and other food.
Since this substance does not pose any significant harm to humans, it can be used in limited quantities by children and adults, with the exception of some exceptions for health reasons.