Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
The guidance also states that:
The term 'natural' (without qualifi cation) should be used only . . . to
describe single foods, of a traditional nature, to which nothing has been
added and which have been subjected only to such processing as to render
them suitable for human consumption (FSA 2008, p. 16).
Acceptable processing methods include smoking (without chemicals), traditional
processes such as baking, roasting or blanching and traditional methods of
dehydration. In relation to bakery products, fermentation is considered 'as a
natural process but subsequent processes may disqualify the fi nal product from
the description 'natural' unless appropriately qualifi ed' (FSA 2008, p. 16).
Interestingly, the guidance states that:
Processes such as freezing, concentration, pasteurisation and sterilisation,
whilst clearly playing a signifi cant role in both making food safe and
preserving it, do not accord with current consumer expectations of 'natural'
foods'. However, the process to which a 'natural' product has been subjected
can be described using these terms (e.g. 'pasteurised natural lemon juice',
'frozen natural orange juice' (FSA 2008, p. 16).
Processes that are not considered to be suitable include bleaching, oxidation,
smoking (with chemicals), tenderising (with chemicals), hydrogenation and a raft
of similar processes. Novel foods and foods derived from novel processes are
excluded from the concept of 'naturalness'.
It is worth mentioning at this stage, although not discussed further in this chapter,
that there are also specifi c labelling requirements for use of the terms 'natural
fl avouring substance' and 'fl avouring preparations' for use in and on foods.
According the FSA guidelines, the criteria for the term 'natural' for fl avourings
requires that it is made from materials that are a natural source of the fl avouring,
although the processing required to extract the fl avouring from such materials can
include distillation or solvent extraction. Flavourings made by chemical synthesis or
non-traditional fermentation or enzyme treatments are not considered to be natural.
It should be appreciated that legislation on the naturalness of raw materials and
fl avouring differ globally and that guidelines provided by UK food law can differ
from those of the European Union (EU) and the food laws of other countries.
14.2 Evaluation of the 'naturalness' of selected bakery
ingredients
The baking industry uses a wide range of natural raw materials to produce basic
products such as bread, biscuits, cakes and pastry. The essential ingredients for all
baked products are fl our, water and salt. In addition, for bread products, yeast, low
levels of fat and minor ingredients such as oxidising improvers such as ascorbic
acid and enzymes and emulsifi ers can be included in the recipe. For cakes and
pastries, fat and egg are also important ingredients. Fruits, nuts and seeds can also
be included in fl our confectionery and other bakery products and typical examples
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