Food additives can be divided into several groups, although there is some overlap between them. Acids - Food acids are added to make flavours "sharper", and also act as preservatives and antioxidants. Common food acids include vinegar, citric acid, tartaric acid, malic acid, fumaric acid, lactic acid. Acidity regulators - Acidity regulators are used to change or otherwise control the acidity and alkalinity of foods. Anticaking agents - Anticaking agents keep powders such as milk powder from caking or sticking. Antioxidants - Antioxidants such as vitamin C act as preservatives by inhibiting the effects of oxygen on food, and can be beneficial to health. Bulking agents - Bulking agents such as starch are additives that increase the bulk of a food without affecting its nutritional value. Emulsifiers - Emulsifiers allow water and oils to remain mixed together in an emulsion, as in mayonnaise, ice cream, and homogenized milk. Flavours - Flavours are additives that give food a particular taste or smell, and may be derived from natural ingredients or created artificially. Flavour enhancers - Flavour enhancers enhance a food's existing flavours. They may be extracted from natural sources (through distillation, solvent extraction, maceration, among other methods) or created artificially. Preservatives - Preservatives prevent or inhibit spoilage of food due to fungi, bacteria and other microorganisms. Stabilizers - Stabilizers, thickeners and gelling agents, like agar or pectin (used in jam for example) give foods a firmer texture. While they are not true emulsifiers, they help to stabilize emulsions. Sweeteners - Sweeteners are added to foods for flavouring. Sweeteners other than sugar are added to keep the food energy (calories) low, or because they have beneficial effects for diabetes mellitus and tooth decay and diarrheal.

食品添加剂可以分为几个小组， 酸 - 使食物的口味变丰富 ，也作为防腐剂和抗氧化剂。常见的食物，包括醋酸，柠檬酸，酒石酸，苹果酸，富马酸，乳酸。 酸度调节剂 - 改变或以其他方式控制酸度和碱度的食品。 防结块剂 - 防止粉末状物结块。 抗氧化剂 - 如维生素C作为防腐剂抑制氧化对食品的影响，并能有利于健康。 填充剂- 填充剂如淀粉在不影响其营养价值增加食物的分量。 乳化剂 - 乳化剂使水和油得以保持混合在一起。 调味剂 - 調味香料是被用來少量加入其他食物中用來改善其味道的食品成分。 风味增强剂 - 提高食品的现有风味。 防腐剂 - 防止或抑制食物由于真菌，细菌和其他微生物而变质。 稳定剂 - 稳定剂，增稠剂和胶凝剂让食品更加的坚实。 甜味剂 - 代糖是低热量的甜味剂，常添加到需要減少熱量的食物。它有利于糖尿病和蛀牙及腹泻。