Clipping Board » Illness Enters through Mouth ─ The information that has been made public is often just the tip of the iceberg...
TVBS Updated: "2011/06/02 19:18" by Ku Tsai-yen
The plasticizer scandal has also exposed the rampant use of food additives. For example, food supply stores sell green tea essence, strawberry essence, and coffee essence—all chemically synthesized flavors—but their color and taste are almost identical. Our reporters obtained these raw materials and took them to a lab, discovering that just a few drops mixed with sugar and an emulsifier can produce a flavor and appearance similar to commercially sold drinks. Many people who tried them couldn’t tell the difference. If drinks were actually sold this way, the profit margin could be as high as 60 times.
High school senior Qiu Siquan: "Should we finish this cup?"
How are these popular drinks made? We brought chemical flavorings to the lab.
Chemistry teacher Jiang Qingzhao: "This really smells like strawberry."
These bottles contain green tea essence, strawberry essence, and coffee essence—their aromas are overpowering, but they are all chemically synthesized in the lab.
Chemistry teacher Jiang Qingzhao: "I’ll drop one bit of the green tea essence sold on the market."
First, add a few drops of green tea essence, stir, then mix in a small amount of emulsifier—now it has both color and flavor. Making strawberry juice is just as simple: red strawberry essence, tinted with an emulsifier. Doesn’t this look like a common drink? Even coffee-flavored ones are possible.
TVBS reporter Ku Tsai-yen: "While the teachers conduct the experiment, we’ve also asked students to prepare edible drinks using these containers. Later, we’ll have everyone taste them."
After a few simple steps, adding ice cubes turns it into a very appealing summer beverage.
High school senior Qiu Siquan: "A bit sweeter—it tastes like store-bought drinks."
Reporter: "What do you think this is?"
High school student: "I think it’s strawberry juice diluted with water."
Reporter: "Does it taste good?"
High school student: "Yeah, it’s good."
Another high school student: "Feels like the cheap drinks you get at casual diners."
The fake fruit juice fooled everyone. Just minutes earlier, these were nothing but chemical flavorings in the lab.
Chemistry teacher Jiang Qingzhao: "Common flavors in daily life are made this way—acid plus alcohol becomes ester, plus water."
Turns out, the scents and flavors we perceive are all esters. Orange juice is no different—it feels authentic when mixed, but contains no actual orange. Some manufacturers are even skilled enough to synthesize the aroma of grilled meat, though their "meat powder" contains no meat at all.
Reporter: "What is this made from? What’s amino acid?"
Food supplier: "Amino acid is a type of chemical compound."
Take strawberry essence as an example: a 50-ntd bottle requires just a few drops per serving, enough to make 100 cups. That translates to a 60-fold profit. These raw materials are readily available everywhere, but what exactly are we consuming? It’s getting harder to tell just by taste.
Source: http://tw. news. yahoo. com/ article/ url/ d/ a/ 110602/ 8/ 2sn7h. html
Tasty & Fragrant! $0.5 "Chemical Juice Powder" Makes 100 Cups
The plasticizer scandal has also exposed the rampant use of food additives. For example, food supply stores sell green tea essence, strawberry essence, and coffee essence—all chemically synthesized flavors—but their color and taste are almost identical. Our reporters obtained these raw materials and took them to a lab, discovering that just a few drops mixed with sugar and an emulsifier can produce a flavor and appearance similar to commercially sold drinks. Many people who tried them couldn’t tell the difference. If drinks were actually sold this way, the profit margin could be as high as 60 times.
High school senior Qiu Siquan: "Should we finish this cup?"
How are these popular drinks made? We brought chemical flavorings to the lab.
Chemistry teacher Jiang Qingzhao: "This really smells like strawberry."
These bottles contain green tea essence, strawberry essence, and coffee essence—their aromas are overpowering, but they are all chemically synthesized in the lab.
Chemistry teacher Jiang Qingzhao: "I’ll drop one bit of the green tea essence sold on the market."
First, add a few drops of green tea essence, stir, then mix in a small amount of emulsifier—now it has both color and flavor. Making strawberry juice is just as simple: red strawberry essence, tinted with an emulsifier. Doesn’t this look like a common drink? Even coffee-flavored ones are possible.
TVBS reporter Ku Tsai-yen: "While the teachers conduct the experiment, we’ve also asked students to prepare edible drinks using these containers. Later, we’ll have everyone taste them."
After a few simple steps, adding ice cubes turns it into a very appealing summer beverage.
High school senior Qiu Siquan: "A bit sweeter—it tastes like store-bought drinks."
Reporter: "What do you think this is?"
High school student: "I think it’s strawberry juice diluted with water."
Reporter: "Does it taste good?"
High school student: "Yeah, it’s good."
Another high school student: "Feels like the cheap drinks you get at casual diners."
The fake fruit juice fooled everyone. Just minutes earlier, these were nothing but chemical flavorings in the lab.
Chemistry teacher Jiang Qingzhao: "Common flavors in daily life are made this way—acid plus alcohol becomes ester, plus water."
Turns out, the scents and flavors we perceive are all esters. Orange juice is no different—it feels authentic when mixed, but contains no actual orange. Some manufacturers are even skilled enough to synthesize the aroma of grilled meat, though their "meat powder" contains no meat at all.
Reporter: "What is this made from? What’s amino acid?"
Food supplier: "Amino acid is a type of chemical compound."
Take strawberry essence as an example: a 50-ntd bottle requires just a few drops per serving, enough to make 100 cups. That translates to a 60-fold profit. These raw materials are readily available everywhere, but what exactly are we consuming? It’s getting harder to tell just by taste.
Source: http://tw. news. yahoo. com/ article/ url/ d/ a/ 110602/ 8/ 2sn7h. html