Calcium chloride is a popular firming agent for pickles and other canned vegetables, although it’s generally safe when taken in small doses. Be mindful though, as taking too much can have serious repercussions.
Calcium chloride (CaCl₂) has many applications outside the food industry, such as de-icing solutions and quickening concrete drying time.
It’s a widely-used chemical that has undergone thorough safety testing by the FDA for its safety.
Why Is Calcium Chloride In Food
Preserving Vegetables and Fruits
Calcium chloride is an essential food additive used in many products. From beer brewing and fresh vegetable preservation, to cheese making and brine prickling, calcium chloride plays a significant role in many food items.
Pickles often contain salt, which adds a unique flavor and helps prevent foods from oxidizing too quickly.
Research has demonstrated that calcium chloride can be used to preserve and enhance firmness in fruits and vegetables by interacting with free carboxyl groups of pectin.
A study on apples revealed that applying calcium chloride after harvest can significantly extend their shelf life. This treatment keeps apples firm and slows down ripening.
Canning Vegetables and Fruits
Canning is an economical and safe way to preserve foods for long periods of time. It destroys microorganisms, inactivates enzymes and extends shelf life, keeping foods fresher for longer.
Calcium chloride is commonly added to canned vegetables and fruits to increase firmness, delay ripening, and enhance texture. It’s also commonly added to pickles, jellies and jams in order to keep them crunchy.
Home-canned vegetables or fruit typically have a more attractive appearance than their canned counterparts, as the particles are uniform in size and spaced. Slicing or diced veggies also produces more eye-catching shapes than their whole-packaged counterparts.
Most fruits and vegetables can be preserved safely in jars using the boiling water bath method, but some, such as tomatoes and figs, have pH values that make this process ineffective.
In such cases, acidification with lemon juice or citric acid must be added prior to canning for successful preservation.
Making Cheese
Cheesemaking involves the use of bacterial cultures (lactic acid bacteria) and coagulating enzymes that help concentrate milk protein and fat from whey.
This process is highly variable, depending on time, temperature, and how well the culture reacts with other ingredients.
Calcium chloride is an integral ingredient in cheese production, helping the curds clump together and become more stable. This can be especially helpful when cheeses are made from homogenized or pasteurized milk.
It is essential to add calcium chloride to fresh milk before rennet or bacterial cultures are added, otherwise its quality may suffer.
Making Beer
Calcium chloride is widely used in food products as a firming agent, and it’s also found in bottled water and sports drinks.
Additions like lemon zest can be made to canned vegetables and pickles without increasing sodium content, while cheeses use it to keep them firm.
When making beer, calcium chloride can be added to the mash for enhanced sweetness and malty flavors. It will also slightly lower its pH level.
Brewing typically uses a ratio of 2:1 calcium chloride to gypsum, for more malty flavors. Conversely, ratios as low as 1:4 can be employed when creating crisper beers.
Add salts and chemicals to your brewing water for balance, helping remove chlorine and chloramines that can impact the flavor of your beer.
10 Benefits Of Using Calcium Chloride In Food
- Firming agent: Calcium chloride is added to food as a firming agent. It reacts with the natural pectin found in fruits to prevent softening that may occur during processing.
- Anti-caking agent: Calcium chloride is an effective anti-caking agent that prevents clumping in food products.
- Stabilizer: Calcium chloride is used as a stabilizer in food products to prevent separation and maintain texture.
- Thickener: Calcium chloride is used as a thickener in food products to give them a thicker consistency.
- Mineral supplement: Calcium chloride can be used to adjust for mineral deficiencies during the cheese making process or even during beer brewing.
- Lower sodium content: Canned vegetable and pickle manufacturers often use calcium chloride as a substitute for sodium chloride in their brines to lower sodium content but still provide the salty flavor and antimicrobial benefits of salt.
- Shelf life extension: While the heat and pressure used during canning extends the shelf life of foods, manufacturers may still add preservatives like calcium chloride to further increase longevity and retain freshness.
- Safe for consumption: Calcium chloride is Generally Recognized as Safe by the US Food & Drug administration when used at recommended levels.
- Commonly used: Calcium chloride is commonly used in a wide range of food products, including cheese, tofu, beer, canned fruits and vegetables, and sports drinks.
- Regulated: Levels of calcium chloride for human consumption are regulated by international or governmental agencies.
What Are Some Common Foods That Contain Calcium Chloride
Calcium chloride is a common food additive that is used in a wide range of food products, including canned fruits and vegetables, cheese, tofu, beer, sports drinks, and more.
It is used as a preservative to extend the shelf life of food products, as well as a firming agent to prevent softening that may occur during processing. Calcium chloride is also used as an anti-caking agent, stabilizer, and thickener.
Manufacturers of canned vegetables and pickles frequently use calcium chloride instead of sodium chloride in their brines to reduce the sodium content while maintaining the salty taste and antimicrobial properties of salt.
When producing cheese or even beer, calcium chloride can be used to make up for any mineral deficiencies.
Calcium chloride aids in a curd that sets more firmly when creating cheese. Calcium chloride assists in producing curds that set more firmly when creating cheese.
Store-bought milk or goat’s milk may have a lower calcium content, and adding calcium chloride allows cheese makers to control the coagulation and coagulation time of the cheese.
The US Food & Drug Administration recognizes calcium chloride as generally safe when used at recommended levels. However, it is important to note that some people may be sensitive to calcium chloride and experience side effects such as nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea.
Is Calcium Chloride Safe For Human Consumption?
When used as directed, calcium chloride is usually safe for human consumption.
The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has established guidelines regarding food additives, and the maximum allowable levels of calcium chloride vary based on the food type.
Bakery products may contain only 0.3% calcium chloride, and jams and jellies may contain only 0.1% calcium chloride. FDA regulations require manufacturers to ensure that calcium chloride content complies with FDA standards.
While calcium chloride is generally safe when ingested in doses applied to food, it can be dangerous if consumed in larger quantities. Ingestion can cause nausea, vomiting, or gastric distress, and if a large amount of calcium chloride is consumed, medical attention may be necessary.
Since calcium chloride is categorized as a “irritant,” it may result in a variety of side effects, including burns, discomfort, and swelling. A calcium chloride ingestion may cause swelling, vomiting, diarrhea, and extreme thirst, as well as low blood pressure.
Calcium chloride poses some serious health and safety hazards, and it is important to handle and store it safely. When handling calcium chloride in the workplace, it is important to protect yourself from potential hazards by using safety glasses, a synthetic apron, and gloves.
If calcium chloride is heated, it decomposes, causing the emission of hydrogen chloride fumes, which are toxic and can cause irritation or damage to the nose and throat if inhaled.
