“Natural” preservative or “Chemical” preservative?
We’ve overheard folks say there are no published studies that prove a “natural” preservative system, typically Vitamin E and C, is better than using BHA, BHT, or Ethoxyquin.
There are published studies showing the efficacy of the chemical preservatives. You can also read about ethoxyquin’s history as a rubber preservative and links of BHA and BHT to cancer.
Mixed tocopherols, which is Vitamin E, is the most common vitamin preservatives. It is gaining more acceptance as more and more lower quality foods begin to incorporate it into their formulas.
We prefer and recommend a vitamin preservative system, although these systems can also be considered synthetic, rather than natural. Vitamin based preservatives typically will break down a bit quicker, but do an excellent job for most products.