Only Plant-based Food Additives: An Overview on Application, Safety, and Key Challenges in the Food Industry

Applying natural food additives extracted from plants is a sustainable development trend in the food industry. Compared with synthetic food additives, plant-based food additives have garnered considerable attention owing to their advantages such as green safety, health, and environmental protection. Therefore, the development and utilization of plant-based food additives is becoming the most active field and future direction for the development of food industry. However, there are several problems associated with large-scale production and application, and more studies are required to evaluate their potential side effects and safety level. In addition, it is necessary to adopt multiple technologies to overcome the shortcomings of natural additives and develop plant-based composite food additives and functional food additives to industrialize natural resources and maximize benefits. This review focuses on the grouping of food additives according to the scope of Food and Drug Administration, including preservation, flavoring agents, coloring agents, texturing agents, nutritional additives, and miscellaneous agents. The application, safety, and major challenges of typical natural food additives extracted from plants are discussed. In addition, it provides a theoretical basis for the development of safer and effective plant-based food additives in the future.