Food additives refer to any substance artificially added to food for technical purposes during the production, processing, preparation, handling, packaging, transportation, or storage of food. These substances can be chemically synthesized or natural. Common food additives include preservatives (such as sulfite, sorbic acid, benzoic acid, etc.), seasonings (such as monosodium glutamate, chicken essence, soy sauce, vinegar, etc.), antioxidants (such as vitamin C, E, BHA, BHT, etc.), coloring agents (such as red yeast rice, carmine, sunset yellow, carbon black, etc.), fermenting agents (such as yeast, baking powder, etc.), thickeners (such as gelatin, pectin, starch, etc.), and sweeteners (such as sucrose, honey, saccharin, aspartame, etc.).