Chitosan in rice - what's that?

In the media fuss over food-safety issues, one intense debate rages on. Do we or do we not need preservatives in rice? Pauline D Loh tries to unravel the what, why and what next.

Chitosan. The first time I saw that word was on a bottle of supplements supposed to help my ageing, aching joints. Now, it's on the list of permitted preservatives for rice, a coating that is supposed to help prevent mildew and retain the freshness of the grains. The other is sodium diacetate, also used to keep rice from rotting.

I know from my limited knowledge that chitosan is something they get from chitin, which is what crustacean shells are made of. Vegetarians take note. Your next bowl of rice may be seafood-flavored without you even knowing it. That's one more reason to read the labels very carefully at the supermarkets, if the rice manufacturers even bother to tell you.