Looking at sweets here in Bhutan, a thought once crossed my mind.
Where do those vivid colours come from?
I looked into how food additives are regulated in Bhutan.
I found that there is a law — the Food Act of Bhutan 2005 — and that BAFRA (the Bhutan Agriculture and Food Regulatory Authority) carries out the practical work of inspection.
The Act sets out the framework for food safety. The specific standards for additives are left to separate rules and regulations, which are drafted by the National Codex Committee. These standards are to be based on international standards (Codex), adapted to what is practicable in Bhutan.
The Act defines an “additive” in this way:
A substance not normally consumed as a food by itself, and not normally used as a typical ingredient of food. Yet it is intentionally added for a technological purpose — in manufacture, processing, packaging and so on — with the result that it becomes a component of the food, or affects the characteristics of that food.
I don’t think food additives are used very much in Bhutan yet. But as the economy develops from here, it’s easy to imagine that they will gradually become more common. That is exactly why I hope you will choose with care.
The case of Japan
Japan has regulations on food additives. Some additives are chemically synthesised; others are natural.
Here are a few of the main ones:
| Purpose | What it does |
| Preservatives | Slow the growth of mould and bacteria, so food lasts longer |
| Colourings | Add colour |
| Sweeteners | Add sweetness |
| Flavourings | Add aroma |
| Antioxidants | Prevent oils from oxidising, and colour and flavour from changing |
| Seasonings | Add savoury taste |
There are many more besides: bleaching agents (to whiten), thickeners (to add body), emulsifiers (to mix water and oil), raising agents (to make things rise), glazing agents (to add shine), and others.
In Japan, some additives came to be permitted in order to allow food to be imported from abroad. By learning about them and choosing for ourselves, we can avoid them if we wish. Rather than criticising a country’s decisions, I believe what matters most is gaining the knowledge to make our own choices.
Of course, synthetic food additives cannot be used in organic food.
What we know, and what we don’t
The effects of chemically synthesised food additives on the human body have been studied to a degree. But honestly, I find that much of it remains unclear. Additives are not infrequently banned later on, for reasons such as carcinogenicity.
As I wrote in an earlier post, some chemical substances are known to affect the brain, the unborn child, and breast milk.
Why additives came to exist
Food additives came about in the process of distributing food cheaply, in large quantities, and in a form that doesn’t spoil easily.
If you want to shorten the time you spend cooking, you end up choosing ingredients that contain additives. Time, or health. That choice sits quietly inside our everyday shopping, often without our noticing.
To want to eat vegetables and rice that contain no chemical substances — when you think of a human being as an animal, I believe this is simply natural.
From the Bhutanese table
In Bhutan’s traditional food, I feel there is much that treasures the ingredients themselves.
Taking what comes from the field, just as it is, and cooking it with care. Isn’t this very value what the world is now trying to recover?
May that precious value be carried on, to the children of the future.
Project Manager, Bhutan Organic Project
CEO, Sun Smile Co., Ltd.