§3.3 Chemicals in Plants and Food (e.g., Fertilizers and Preservatives)

• Jurisdiction: United States
• Publication year: 2022

§3.3 Chemicals in Plants and Food (e.g., Fertilizers and Preservatives)

§3.3.1 Chemicals

Plants are a major classification group of about 300,000 species,¹⁶⁴ including familiar organisms such as trees, flowers, herbs, and ferns. Plants belong to the Kingdom Vegetabilia later known as Plantae,¹⁶⁵ and they serve as a major source of food and medicine.¹⁶⁶ Plants, in the life-cycle, play an essential role¹⁶⁷ primarily because they act as food and drink, "including herbs used in the preparation of dietary supplements and other medicines," from which our body ingests the essential elements needed for life and healthy living comes directly from plants or from other living things that feed on plants.¹⁶⁸

Plants in their natural state grow from the soil.¹⁶⁹ The corollary is that through plants and animals our bodies also grow.¹⁷⁰ The growth and development of plants are also dependent on microorganisms that break up natural chemicals in the soil to make them available and to plants in the form of nutrients.¹⁷¹ If the soil is not properly fertile, i.e., not possessing a sufficient amount of microorganisms, plant growth will likely be retarded or halted.¹⁷² A major source of microorganisms and invariably nutrients for the soil is decayed organic matter from dead plant matter, animal matter, and leaf mold. The decayed organic matter gives life to the soil, returning what plants and animals had previously taken from it.¹⁷³

The relevance and importance of a good soil to plant growth and to our health has been argued as incontrovertible.¹⁷⁴ As Tompkins and Bird state, a "healthy" soil is a soil properly composed with the right bacteria, fungi, and earthworms, free from artificially produced nutrients in the form of chemical fertilizers and pesticides.¹⁷⁵ Such a soil produces strong healthy plants, and healthy plants make strong, healthy animals and strong, healthy human beings.¹⁷⁶ When artificial chemical fertilizers and pesticides are used in conventional agriculture,¹⁷⁷ there may be an increase in crop yield,¹⁷⁸ there is also the likelihood of damage to the soil and poison to the environment.¹⁷⁹ There is evidence that nutritional quality of crops produced by conventional agriculture may be poor in vitamins, minerals, enzymes, and proteins.¹⁸⁰

A major feature of conventional agriculture is intensive farming.¹⁸¹ Intensive farming exposes and loosens topsoils, making them more susceptible to erosion.¹⁸² And because erosion washes away the soil's natural nutrient-rich top soil, the soil is rendered infertile and susceptible to pest infection.¹⁸³ To continue to keep the soil fertile and free from pests, more chemical fertilizers and pesticides are added to the soil. And this regular exercise can have immense detrimental effect for the environment.¹⁸⁴

In the United States, a major effect of soil erosion on the environment is shown in water contamination.¹⁸⁵ There is evidence that the chemicals and pesticides used by farmers to enhance soil and farmland productivity have through percolation and erosion seeped into wells, dams, rivers, aquifers, lakes, and wetlands, contaminating drinking water supplies.¹⁸⁶ It must be mentioned that this condition is not peculiar to United States alone. This level of contamination is common in countries with a long history of chemical and pesticides use.

The issue is not whether some of these chemicals and pesticides had adverse consequences on the soil,¹⁸⁷ rather the issue is determining the degree to which these chemicals had altered the nutritional composition of crops and plants. This leads to deleterious effects on the health of human beings that feed on the plants.¹⁸⁸ The nutritional quality of crops, including fruits, vegetables, and grains produced by conventional agriculture, has been compared to those produced by organic farming.¹⁸⁹ Studies like these are now the subjects of academic discussions and further research.¹⁹⁰ There seems to be a consensus among nutritionists and researchers that organic produce contains fewer and lower levels of chemicals and pesticides than conventional produce.¹⁹¹

There is a worldwide spread in the use of chemicals and fertilizers. It was reported in 1980, more than twenty-five years ago, that African and Asian countries would require over 30 million tons of chemical fertilizers to avoid widespread famine.¹⁹² Propaganda campaigns like this fueled importation of fertilizers by these developing and mainly agrarian economies. Most nations today in Africa and Asia are importers or producers of chemical fertilizers.

Chemical fertilizers and pesticide use is no longer restricted to a particular country, region, or continent. It is used worldwide, irrespective of the type of farming or agriculture practiced. And since there is evidence that these chemicals contaminate our environment, water, and affect the chemical, biological, and nutritional compositions of our crops and plant, scientific research is necessary.

This understanding is important because the natural constituents of these plants, uncontaminated by artificial chemicals or other additives, are vital to the production of effective drugs or herbal remedies.

§3.3.2 Preservatives or Additives in Foods

A preservative is defined as a natural or synthetic chemical that is added to products such as foods, pharmaceuticals, paints, biological samples, etc., to retard spoilage, whether from microbial growth or undesirable chemical changes.¹⁹³

In the process of preventing spoilage, preservatives serve as either antimicrobials or antioxidants,¹⁹⁴ or both. As antimicrobials, preservatives prevent growth of molds, yeast, and bacteria.¹⁹⁵ As antioxidants, preservatives keep foods from becoming rancid, browning, or developing black spots.¹⁹⁶ They also minimize damage to some essential amino acids, the building blocks of proteins, and the loss of vitamins.¹⁹⁷

While an additive can be defined as any substance added to food,¹⁹⁸ legally the term is said to refer to any substance the intended use of which results in its becoming a component of the characteristics of any food.¹⁹⁹ This definition includes any substance used in the production, processing, treatment, packaging, transportation, or storage of food.²⁰⁰ The words "preservative" and "additive" are used interchangeably in this manual to refer to a natural or chemical product added to foods or other products to retard spoilage.

Preservatives can be applied directly or indirectly to food.²⁰¹ When added for a specific purpose, it is referred to as a "direct additive."²⁰² Many such direct additives are identified on the ingredient label of the specific product.²⁰³ It is indirect when a trace amount of it becomes part of the product due to the nature of the product packaging, storage, or handling.²⁰⁴ In the United States, preservatives are regulated by the federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic (FD&C) Act of 1958 and its amendments.²⁰⁵ The Food Additives Amendment to the FD&C Act, passed in 1958,²⁰⁶ requires Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for the use of an additive prior to its inclusion in food, and it also requires the manufacturer to prove an additive's safety for the means in which it will be used.²⁰⁷

Preservatives and additives are used in foods for a variety of reasons, some of which include maintenance of product consistency, improvement or maintenance of nutritional value, maintenance of palatability and wholesomeness, to provide leavening or control acidity/alkalinity, and to enhance flavor or impart color.²⁰⁸

Most food additives are considered safe.²⁰⁹ But opinions differ as to the suitability of synthetic additives or preservatives in food. Some synthetic preservatives are excused to be carcinogenic or toxic, causing allergic reactions.²¹⁰ Further, hyperactivity in children, allergies, asthma, and even migraines have been said to be associated with the adverse reactions to food additives.²¹¹ It is also claimed that some additives, like sulfur, used in keeping dried fruits fresh, sodium nitrate used in preserving ham, bacon, and sausage, including formaldehyde used in disinfecting frozen vegetables, are dangerous...