Food Labels: Natural Flavors

I've read food labels to ensure that our purchases in the past were meat/fish free for my vegetarian wife for many years.  Over this time, it has really bothered me how many items listed I can not even begin to pronounce, let alone know what they are.  The other item I see listed on so many labels is "Natural Flavors"...  can this really be a legitimate/legal way of "informing" we the consumer?  How does someone with a food allergy or someone who chooses to avoid certain foods/sweeteners/salt/etc... truly do so if the food industry is allowed to throw in a bunch of "natural flavors"?  Why is this acceptable?  How difficult is it to list everything that is in your product?  Isn't this the point of the label?   Let's do some research and find out why this is!

 

Natural Flavors

The FDA defines this in it's Code of Federal Regulations Title 21 in Part 101-Food Labeling, section 101.22: 

(3) The term natural flavor or natural flavoring means the essential oil, oleoresin, essence or extractive, protein hydrolysate, distillate, or any product of roasting, heating or enzymolysis, which contains the flavoring constituents derived from a spice, fruit or fruit juice, vegetable or vegetable juice, edible yeast, herb, bark, bud, root, leaf or similar plant material, meat, seafood, poultry, eggs, dairy products, or fermentation products thereof, whose significant function in food is flavoring rather than nutritional. Natural flavors include the natural essence or extractives obtained from plants listed in 182.10, 182.20, 182.40, and 182.50 and part 184 of this chapter, and the substances listed in 172.510 of this chapter.

Okay, so at least we know that legally a "Natural Flavor" has to have been real at one point, but that pesky word "derived" throws a wrench in things.  The food industry has done plenty to turn real food into things that are terrible for you, but still try to convince you that it's great.  For instance, do you feel good that you switched to that better choice for a sweetener with Stevia? Do yourself a favor and read this link.   What about 100% Orange Juice from the big names? Do you search out those not made from concentrate, "freshly squeezed".  Even these use "flavor packs", created by perfume scientists, after removing the oxygen (to make it stay fresh for up to a year!) from the squeezed juice, to make sure each bottle tastes the same.  These packs are "derived" from oranges and who knows what else, but have been modified so drastically, they are hard pressed to be called "natural"  Read more at foodrenegade.com

Let's take a step back,  and ask the FDA to see what they define as "Natural":

From a food science perspective, it is difficult to define a food product that is 'natural' because the food has probably been processed and is no longer the product of the earth. That said, FDA has not developed a definition for use of the term natural or its derivatives. However, the agency has not objected to the use of the term if the food does not contain added color, artificial flavors, or synthetic substances.

So, it is tough to define Natural you say?  I think it is actually pretty easy, and they list it in there "product of the earth".   Yes, I would agree that the food industry is going to process most foods, but why do you feel the need to say that you can't define "natural" yet allow them to slap natural all over their products if they really aren't?  If they have to process items, they aren't natural anymore, seems simple to me! 

We are still left with allergens and dietary issues that can hide inside this term, with meat, seafood, poultry, eggs, dairy, nuts, wheat, soy, etc...  Now, the blanket statement listing that the big allergens are potentially in there or "made in the same facility" is probably enough for those with the main ones, but it truly does not cover every base and is a disservice to those with allergies.  I'm not calling for every single food allergy to be listed on labels, but if EVERY ingredient had to be on the label, in layman's terms, that would go a long way towards honesty and transparency.  We are paying for this food, don't we deserve to know what it is we are buying? 

That is the best way for us to make a change though, the food lobby is too strong to pay attention to any petition or an outcry from this little blog.  If we continue the call for change in conjunction with not buying things we are left in the dark as to what we are buying, change will come.

I challenge the FDA to not take the cop out and accept processed food for what it is and not try to "natural" coat it.  They are failing people who read labels, but really don't know better, I know, because I was one of them.