ANALYSIS OF RHODAMINE B IN CAKE OF TRADITIONAL FOOD TYPE (Study at Pasar Tanjung of Jember Regency)

Abstract

Backround and aims: Traditional food is one of food that known and consumed by our society. It has a lot of kinds, one of them is cake. Cake has interesting colours such as red, yellow and green. The interesting colours in cake is from food dye. Food dye is one of food additives. The non- food dye is not allowed for the food which is consumed by customers. One of non- food dye is rhodamine B and has possibility that cake type of traditional food contain with it. The research is taken place in Pasar Tanjung because it is the prime market in Jember and as a main selling place of traditional food. This research aims to know kinds of cake that sells in Pasar Tanjung, to know about rhodamine B as a food dye in traditional food, to know the differences between the cake type of traditional food that contain with and without rhodamine B, to investigate the dangerous for society’s health that can appear because of rhodamine B if it is used as a food dye. Methods: Based on the various of research, this research is a descriptive research that aims to describe the condition of safety in food, especially traditional food. Data collecting and analysis is done by observation and laboratory test Results: The result of this research is the various cake type of traditional food sold in Pasar Tanjung, partly is wet-cake. Based on laboratory test result, from thirty seven samples, six samples are proven to contain with rhodamine B. Five from six samples proven to contain with rhodamine B are Mangkok cake and the other is Kukus cake. Conclusions: The differences between cakes that contain with rhodamine B are from the bright red colour on the cake, bright red spots and the bitter taste. If rhodamine B is consumed by people in a long term, it can cause absorbed canal irritation, the cell change in liver and cause red colour urine.