FOOD 2010 Chapter 12: Chapter 12

• School: University of Guelph
• Department: Food Science
• Course: FOOD 2010
• Professor: Massimo Marcone

Document Summary

Toxicant: any chemical substance that can elicit a detrimental effect in a biological system. Three categories of food toxicants: endogenous: produced by tissue cells in plants and other biological raw materials. Often meant for protection of the plant tissue from pests or pathogenic organisms. Common in fruits and vegetables mainly, and herbs: naturally occurring: produced by organisms and contaminate the food product. Any food that becomes contaminated with toxin-producing organisms has the potential of being toxic (ie: s. aureus and e. coli in fresh meats and vegetables: synthetic toxicants: synthetically produced and find their way into food products. Since we can genetically engineer cells that can produce chemical substances, productions of natural toxicants may also be considered synthetic. Include drug residues in foods of animal origin, and pesticides. Toxicants can be found in numerous types of foods, and therefore the study of toxins is very relevant to human health.