Question

What is the role of these as food additives?
i) Sodium benzoate
ii) Aspartame

Answer 1

i) Sodium \: benzoate is used as a food preservative. It is classified under chemical methods of food preservation. It is added to food to inhibit, retard or arrest the process of fermentation, acidification or other decomposition of food by growth of microbes.
ii) Aspartame is an artificial sweetening agent. It is about 100 times sweeter than the cane sugar. It is used in cold foods as it is unstable at higher temperature. It has sweet taste but no food value.