Acetic Acid in Food

Purpose:

Used to adjust the level of acidity of food.  Acidity may affect microbiological quality, cooking results, flavour or texture of food.

Description:

Vinegar

Acetic acid (also called ethanoic acid) is a weak organic acid.  Unlike a lot of other food additives, acetic acid is commonly used in home cooking.  Acetic acid is what gives vinegar its distinctive sour taste and pungent smell.

Common table vinegar is diluted acetic acid. Usually it is about 4% to 8% by mass. More concentrated solutions may be used in commercial pickling operations.

As an industrial chemical, it has many uses including the production of plastics and synthetic fibers and fabrics. It can also be used as a solvent.

It may be produced synthetically or by biological fermentation.

Side Effects / Adverse Reactions:

Most sources indicate that low concentrations of acetic acid are generally safe.  However, some studies have shown that long-term heavy vinegar consumption may cause:

•  hypokalemia (low potassium levels in blood),
•  hyperreninemia (the presence of an abnormally high concentration of renin in the blood)
• osteoporosis (reduced bone density).

Common Foods Containing Acetic Acid:

As previously mentioned, common household vinegar is simply a diluted form of acetic acid. Therefore, foods that contain vinegar also contain acetic acid. This would include things like:

• Pickled food,
• Condiments such as Ketchup, Mayonnaise and Mustard,
• Salad Dressings and Marinades.

Vinegar is commonly used to flavour fish and chips (french fries), potatoe chips, spinach, and cabbage.

Vinegar has other uses in cooking.  It can be used to sour milk to create a substitute for buttermilk.  It also reacts with alkaline ingredients like baking soda.  This reaction produces a gas that helps make baked goods rise.

E Number:

The E number of acetic acid is 260.

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