INTERNATIONAL PROGRAMME ON CHEMICAL SAFETY
WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION
TOXICOLOGICAL EVALUATION OF SOME
FOOD COLOURS, EMULSIFIERS, STABILIZERS,
ANTI-CAKING AGENTS AND CERTAIN
OTHER SUBSTANCES
FAO Nutrition Meetings Report Series
No. 46A WHO/FOOD ADD/70.36
The content of this document is the result of the deliberations of the
Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives which met in Rome,
27 May - 4 June 19691
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
World Health Organization
1 Thirteenth report of the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food
Additives, FAO Nutrition Meetings Report Series, in press;
Wld Hlth Org. techn. Rep. Ser., in press.
ACID-TREATED STARCHES
Biological Data
These modified starches represent an intermediate stage in the normal
enzymatic digestion of food starch in the human body. This process
also occurs in the human stomach and results in hydrolysis of some of
the linkages between adjacent anhydroglucose units with a reduction of
the mean molecular weight of these starch molecules. In the commercial
process hydrochloric, sulfuric or phosphoric acid is used and the
excess is neutralized with sodium hydroxide or sodium carbonate.
Subsequent treatment of the modified starch ensures that only traces
of either sodium chloride sodium sulfate or sodium hydrogen phosphate
remain behind.
Comments
These starches should be regarded as normal constituents of food.
EVALUATION
Not limited except for good manufacturing practice.