Unsplash/EuropeanaFood safety is something most of us take for granted, but not too long ago, eating could be genuinely dangerous. For centuries, food wasn’t just adulterated to stretch profit—it was tampered with using substances that were downright toxic. Long before modern regulations, some of the most harmful materials ended up in everyday meals. Here are 11 historical food additives that would be completely illegal today, and for very good reason.
1. Lead in wine and cider
The ancient Romans were known for sweetening their wine with sapa, a syrup made by boiling down grape juice in lead pots. The result was a lead acetate compound that added a pleasant taste, and a slow descent into chronic poisoning.
Even centuries later, lead-lined containers and pewter mugs were used to store cider and wine, leaching dangerous amounts of metal into drinks. Headaches, abdominal pain, and cognitive issues were common, though the cause wasn’t understood at the time. Today, using lead in any food or drink product would be a criminal offence.
2. Copper in pickles and peas
In Victorian Britain, a bright green colour was considered a sign of freshness, even if it was completely artificial. Cooks and food producers often added copper sulphate to preserved peas and pickles to keep them looking vibrant. The problem? Copper sulphate is a poison. Consuming it regularly can damage the kidneys, liver, and stomach lining. It wasn’t banned until food adulteration became a public concern in the late 19th century.
3. Borax as a meat preservative
Borax, a chemical compound more commonly used in cleaning products, was once considered an acceptable meat preservative in the late 1800s and early 1900s. It was cheap, slowed spoilage, and helped meat appear fresher than it really was. Of course, borax is toxic when ingested in any real quantity. Symptoms of poisoning include nausea, vomiting, and kidney damage. Its use in food has since been outlawed in most countries, including the UK.
4. Chalk in bread
Bakers in 18th and 19th century Britain sometimes added chalk or powdered limestone to bread flour to bulk it out and make loaves appear whiter. It wasn’t technically poisonous, but it was certainly not food-grade, and it interfered with digestion. Eating chalky bread over time could lead to stomach issues and even malnutrition, as the additives diluted the nutritional content of the flour. Public pressure eventually led to stricter bread regulations by the mid-1800s.
5. Alum in flour
Alum (aluminium potassium sulphate) was another additive used to whiten bread and extend its shelf life. It helped give loaves a fine texture, which customers associated with quality. But alum is astringent and, in larger doses, toxic. Repeated consumption could cause digestive problems and impact kidney function. The growing outcry about adulterated bread played a major role in the passage of the UK’s Food Adulteration Act of 1860.
6. Red lead in sweets
One of the most tragic examples of food contamination came in 1858, when red lead, used as a pigment, was mistakenly added to sweets in Bradford. Twenty-one people died, and over 200 were made seriously ill. The toxic compound had been used to colour the sweets a vibrant red. It was later found that a miscommunication between suppliers and confectioners had caused the deadly mix-up. The incident helped galvanise public demand for food safety laws.
7. Arsenic in beer and food dyes
Arsenic was once found in everything from green food colouring to beer. In the 19th century, poor quality sugar and beer ingredients were sometimes contaminated with arsenic due to industrial processes. In 1900, a major arsenic poisoning outbreak occurred in Manchester, affecting over 6,000 people. Investigators traced the cause to contaminated brewing sugar. It was a turning point that led to more serious food safety inspections.
8. Formaldehyde in milk
Yes, the chemical used to preserve corpses was once used in milk. In the early 1900s, some milk producers in the UK and the US added formaldehyde to extend shelf life and mask spoilage.
Ingesting formaldehyde can cause severe abdominal distress, and long-term exposure is linked to cancer. Its use in food is now completely banned, but its presence in early milk supplies contributed to high child mortality rates in industrial cities.
9. Strontium in sweets
Strontium compounds, especially strontium chromate, were used in early food dyes to create vivid red and yellow colours. While the exact toxicity of all strontium compounds varies, chromates are known carcinogens and can severely irritate the lungs and stomach. Their use in sweets, especially those targeted at children, is one of the more shocking examples of how little oversight existed before modern regulation.
10. Paraffin wax on fruit
Paraffin wax was once applied to fruit to give it a shiny, appealing appearance and slow decay. While some modern fruit waxes are food-safe, early versions were derived from petroleum and contained impurities not suitable for human consumption. Although not as deadly as arsenic or lead, consuming paraffin in large quantities could cause digestive upset. Eventually, regulations tightened, and only highly refined, edible coatings are now permitted on fruit.
11. Saltpetre in meat
Saltpetre (potassium nitrate) was widely used to cure meat and keep it looking red and fresh. While it does have antibacterial properties, large doses are dangerous. Overexposure can cause headaches, dizziness, and in extreme cases, kidney damage or blood issues. It’s still used in some regulated forms today, but much more cautiously, and alternatives are often preferred. The unregulated use of saltpetre in the past was a major concern for food campaigners.
Why it took so long to stop
Much of this went on for so long because food regulation was almost non-existent before the late 19th century. Profiteering was rampant, and consumers had little power to challenge adulterated products. When people did get sick—or died—it was often chalked up to bad luck, not a broken system.
Public scandals, scientific research, and investigative journalism finally pushed governments to act. Britain’s Food and Drugs Act of 1875 laid the groundwork for modern safety standards. It took more than a century of hard lessons, but the worst additives were eventually stamped out.
These days, food additives are tightly controlled in the UK, with clear rules about what’s allowed and what isn’t. But the past is a reminder of how dangerous things used to be, and how fragile food safety can be if no one’s paying attention.
