Sulfur dioxide

Sulfur dioxide is a gas without color and with a pungent smell, applied in the food industry as preservative. Its chemical formula – _SO2. The widespread name of preservative which is used for marking of the products containing sulfur dioxide – E220. Other names of additive which can be met on the label of foodstuff – sulfites, sulphurous acid, sulphurous anhydride, sulphurous gas.

Preservative sulfur dioxide is dissolved in water, ethanol and sulphuric acid.

Use of sulfur dioxide in the food industry

E220 sulfur dioxide is used in the meat-processing industry, for preparation of vegetables and fruit, for production of wines and other drinks. Wine industry – one of the main consumers of preservative sulfur dioxide, and we will tell about it later.

Producers of meat products use sulfur dioxide for raw materials processing – that in it bacteria did not appear. Side effect of sulfites – they do not allow meat to change color that often misleads buyers concerning its freshness.

At production from fruit and berries E220 sulfur dioxide is used as intermediate preservative which process fruits before processing (fruit puree, the whole and cut fruits). Thus, the end product contains the minimum quantity of preservative. Sulfur dioxide also process dried fruits in order that they were better stored and did not lose a trade dress. Practically all citrus before transportation is processed by E220.

Also it is necessary to know that rare production of juice, beer and other soft, alcoholic beverages does without sulfur dioxide.

Addition of preservative in svezheotzhaty juice prevents emergence of a mold, acetic-acid bacteriums.

Sulfur dioxide in the preventive purposes process rooms in which fruit and vegetables are stored, clear tanks for storage of wines and other drinks.

Sulfur dioxide in wine

The fact that preservative sulfur dioxide contains in wine it is customary practice. Today only expensive, so-called biodynamic wines are made without E220 preservative.

What it is possible to justify availability of sulfur dioxide in wine with? Addition E220 in a must allows to stabilize its microflora, not to allow oxidation.

If to adhere to admissible norms, preservative sulfur dioxide cannot do harm to the person using the wine containing E220. For some reason it is considered that the headache which developed after wine arises because of availability of preservative in it. This theory can be applicable only to those wines in which the content of sulfur dioxide many times exceeds norm. Today norm 300 mg of preservative on 1000 ml of wine are considered. The producers of wine trying to please the consumer try not that not to overestimate norm, but also as much as possible to reduce amount of sulfur dioxide in the products and leave it at the level of 200-250 mg/kg.

Sulfur dioxide – harm

From consumers do not hide that sulfur dioxide is a toxic chemical compound of the third class of danger. At the people sensitive to preservative, or at those who exceeded its dosage or long used, there can be most different negative reactions: a fluid lungs in an acute stage, vomiting, cold, suffocation, disturbance of the speech, cough, diarrhea, dizziness, a headache, nausea, weight in a stomach.

The main harm of sulfur dioxide for a human body is that it destroys B1 vitamin and proteins.

Asthmatics have to use the products processed or containing sulfur dioxide with care – substance can cause strong allergic reaction in them. Therefore important attentively to study information on the label of foodstuff and alcohol. It is necessary to wash out and heat the dried fruits and fresh fruit or vegetables processed by sulfites before the use well 5-10 minutes in clear hot water (95-100 °C). It is one of the ways of desulphitation which are applied on production.

Admissible norm of sulfur dioxide in products which are eaten constantly – 100 mg/kg.