Food Quote by Bill Bryson
““Sulphuric acid was added to vinegar for extra sharpness, chalk to milk, turpentine to gin. Arsenite of copper was used to make vegetables greener or to make jellies glisten. Lead chromate gave bakery products a golden glow and brought radiance to mustard. Lead acetate was added to drinks as a sweetener, and red lead somehow made Gloucester cheese lovelier to behold, if not safer to eat. There was hardly a foodstuff, it seems, that couldn’t be improved or made more economical to the retailer through a little deceptive manipulation.””
About This Quote
Source Book: The Food Lab, 2015
Historical food additives were often harmful chemicals used to enhance taste, appearance, or shelf life, driven by profit rather than safety.
In simple terms: Chemicals were added to food for profit, not health.
Key Takeaway
Question food safety and ingredient transparency.
Themes
food history
industrialization
consumer deception
Mood
concerned
inquisitive
Type
educational
informative
When to use this quote
- cooking at
- grocery shopping
- policy advocacy
Key Concepts
food chemistry
public health
regulation
Questions to Reflect On
- What modern additives concern you?
- How can consumers verify food safety?
A Different Perspective
Modern regulations limit many of these practices.
![“[S]ometimes, when you are a food person, the possible irrelevance of what you are doing doesn’t cross your mind until it’s too late. (Once, for example, when I was just starting out in the food business, I was hired by the caper people to develop a lot of recipes using capers, and it was weeks of…” quote by Nora Ephron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/d79/nora-ephron-1217_business_s-ometimes-when-you-are-a-food-person-th_980.jpg)
