Barcode decryption

2024 Author: James Gerald | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 14:00

Eating food is an art. About which, unfortunately, modern man managed to forget. Alas, unhurried family meals and measured tea ceremonies remain in the distant past. In the frantic rhythm of our life, we eat more and more somehow, somewhere and something. For which we pay with our health. After all, the most common food product can be fraught with surprises. Do not get off with a quick glance at the expiration date, try to read the label to the end. In addition to the familiar words (sugar, fat, cream, butter), you will surely see all sorts of abbreviations and ambiguous numbers. The whole secret lies in them. The correctness of your choice will largely depend on what is behind these "hieroglyphs".

Barcode myths

Nowadays, on almost any product you can see intricate dashes-numbers, called barcodes. We are so used to its presence on labels that we began to perceive it as an indicator of quality. Meanwhile, the barcode has little to do with the quality of goods. It was created not so much for consumers as for manufacturers and, most importantly, distributors.

In the distant Soviet times, there was no trace of a barcode. During the period of total shortage of goods, there were few, it was easy to navigate in them, so there was no need for additional coding. With our today's abundance, neither the seller nor the manufacturer is able to remember all the names. So short and compact barcodes have replaced long certificates with product descriptions. It is now enough for the seller to carry the goods down with a barcode above the cash register, and all the necessary information appears on the screen. This greatly simplifies and speeds up the process of warehousing and selling products.

Now almost all goods circulating on the world market are encoded. However, this is not necessary at all. If desired, the manufacturer may not put a barcode on his product, especially since it is not cheap. In order to obtain a commodity numbering, it is necessary to pay an entrance fee (14,000 rubles) to the Russian branch of the international system of commodity numbers (EAN), and then annually pay about 9,000 to maintain the system. But manufacturers prefer to fork out, it is almost impossible to sell goods without a barcode (most stores refuse to accept them).

In a 13-digit barcode (European standard), the first two digits indicate the country; the next five are the company code; in five more digits consumer properties are encrypted (the first is the name of the product, the second is the consumer characteristics, the third is the mass, the fourth is the composition, the fifth is the color). The last digit of the barcode is a control one, it is used to determine the authenticity of the code.

The only thing that a consumer can determine by bar-coding is the country of manufacture. However, this also has its own difficulties. If the country of manufacture indicated on the label does not match the barcode data, this does not always mean that you have been attacked by a counterfeit. Some firms, producing goods in one country, are registered in another. Or they place their branches in third countries. Perhaps it is a joint production. In general, there are plenty of reasons.

The appearance of the barcode also says little. It may well be narrow and short and without numbers at all. Abbreviated encodings are fine. There is, however, one way to determine the authenticity of the goods by the barcode:

1. Remember the check digit in the barcode (it is the last one).

2. Add up the numbers in even places.

3. Multiply the resulting sum by three (conditionally we get X).

4. Add up the numbers in odd places, except for the control one (conditionally we get Y).

5. Add X and Y (X + Y).

6. Discard the first digit from the result (we get Z).

7. Now subtract Z (10-Z) from ten.

You should get a check digit. If they do not match, then you are definitely a fake. A cumbersome way, but there is no other way.

Nowhere without additives

Food additives are present in almost all food products and are labeled with the mysterious letter "E" (E194, E263, etc.). You can navigate in this system using the first digits of the code: E-1 * - these are dyes; E-2 * - preservatives (prolong the shelf life of products); E-3 * - antioxidants (protect foods from oxidation); E-4 * - stabilizers (retain consistency, impart viscosity); E-5 * - emulsifiers (create a homogeneous mixture of immiscible phases, for example, water and oil); E1000 * - sweeteners, glazes, etc.

Supplements are natural (beta-carotene, saffron, vinegar, salt, pepper, etc.) and synthetic. It is around synthetic additives that the largest amount of controversy is played out. Environmentalists say that their use is extremely harmful to our health, since they are foreign substances for the body. On the other hand, food industry proves that they are harmless, based on the fact that each supplement, before entering the market, undergoes thorough research and is used in a clearly established dosage (not hazardous to health). In principle, both are right.

Not all supplements are harmful. So far, only five are prohibited in Russia:

- dyes - E121 (citrus red) and E123 (amaranth);

- preservative E249 (formaldehyde)

- bread improvers E924a and E924b.

Two more preservatives - E216 and E217 - have been temporarily banned since 2005 (additional testing is underway).

But, on the other hand, while the harmful effect of the same amaranth was found out, it was used for a long time in the production of carbonated water, candies, ice cream and jelly. But he, as it turned out, is dangerous in any quantities, as it provokes the growth of malignant tumors and causes fetal pathology in pregnant women.

In addition, there are a number of additives that are not prohibited, but also not permitted for use. There are more than a hundred of them, all of them are still being tested.

Unfortunately, the modern food industry cannot be imagined without food additives. Still, the long list of E-codes on the product should alert you, as well as the long shelf life of the product (indicating the presence of preservatives). It is also worth limiting the consumption of sausages and especially smoked meats, because they traditionally contain nitrates (E251, E252) and nitrites (E250), which in high concentrations act as carcinogens. Needless to say, supplemented foods are not recommended for children. People prone to allergies should also study the E-code list very carefully. And the owners of absolute health should not neglect this recommendation.

Mutant products

According to Greenpeace, more than a third of food products on the Russian market contain genetically modified ingredients (GMI). And meanwhile, how often do we pay attention to this fact, going to a neighboring grocery store. Once upon a time, in Stalin's times, genetics was in a "pen" and practically did not develop. The possibilities of a modern genetic engineer are endless. He can take the gene of some flounder and transplant it into a tomato. And all would be fine if then this tomato was not fed to us. How many of these "mutants" we eat per day is anyone's guess. Manufacturers are in no hurry to reveal their secrets to us, despite the fact that they are obliged to do so. By order of the chief sanitary doctor of Russia, since 2002, all products containing GMI must be labeled. However, both in 2002 and in 2005 this order was successfully ignored. So it is almost impossible to determine the presence of genetically modified organisms in a product by the label, but it is worth trying. Sometimes the manufacturer nevertheless informs us about this, however, the corresponding abbreviation (GMI) is printed in incredibly small print somewhere "from the edge".

The widespread use of transgenic products is primarily due to the low cost of their production. It is much easier to grow potatoes that the Colorado potato beetle does not eat. But on the other hand, why not trust the Colorado potato beetle in this matter. If such a connoisseur of potatoes prefers not to touch the "new variety", that says something. By the way, bees also never land on transgenic plants. They are consumed only by a person, and even then most often out of ignorance.

The assurances of geneticists in the harmlessness of genetically modified products are not supported by anything, in principle, as well as the statements of their opponents. That is, we do not know how genetically modified organisms affect humans. However, a number of researchers are of the opinion that, without having negative consequences for the consumer himself, the products of genetic engineering have an extremely unfavorable effect on his offspring. Therefore, in no case should children and pregnant women consume transgenic food.

Do not expect manufacturers to honestly label their products. For them, this is tantamount to suicide. So far, the only organization in Russia that somehow controls this process is Greenpeace. On the site www. Greenpeace.ru ecologists regularly publish lists of products containing GMI. They are quite extensive and noteworthy.

Most often, genetically modified components are found in products from potatoes (chips), tomatoes (tomato sauces, ketchup), canned corn (canned food) and, of course, in products containing soy. Soy is very useful, but, unfortunately, it is almost always genetically modified. Its presence can be found in meat and sausages, semi-finished products, pates, etc. If the product contains "vegetable protein", then it is soy.

It is imperative to be extremely careful with American goods. The United States is the world's largest supplier of transgenic foods. GMI is used by such well-known companies as Coca-Cola, Nestle and others. It is also foolish to assume that soy is not included in the "fast" food (hamburgers, cheeseburgers, etc.).

But the saddest thing is that genetically modified soy is added to baby food. Three years ago, the Humana baby food scandal erupted. Several children in Israel died because the mixture lacked essential vitamin B1 for the development of the nervous system. Many scientists associate the mysterious disappearance of this element with the unpredictable behavior of transgenic soybeans present in the mixture. Young mothers should know that the safest food for a baby is breast milk. Well, for those who nevertheless decided to give up the benefits of breastfeeding, it would not hurt to look at the Greenpeace website and see what food was tested for the presence of GMI. The rest, however, also does not hurt to do it.

Technological progress has made our life extremely easy, made it comfortable and convenient. But, unfortunately, not all the achievements of civilization have had a beneficial effect on our health. This should be taken into account before rushing headlong into the supermarket and sweeping away everything that can be tucked under your arm. Barcode can tell us a lot. Remember! We are what we eat.

What other surprises may lie in wait for us in the supermarket, you will find out by reading other equally interesting articles in the "Health" section on our women's website!