Natural Flavors? Have you ever noticed near the bottom of the ingredients list on a food product at the "Big Grocer" the words "natural flavors". This typically gives a person a good feeling about the product. "Hey man, it's gotta be good, it's natural". But the story now begins. (You're probably saying, "C'mon Mike, pretty soon I won't be able to buy anything at the "Big Grocer".)
A natural flavor is a man-made additive. It could be from a "natural' source (what ever that is or means) or it could derive from an artificial source. Natural flavors are added to processed foods and fast foods. You see, processed foods lose almost all their flavor through the processes of freezing, dehydrating, and canning. So flavor must be put back into the food because taste is the #1 most important quality in food. Again, here is where are mad scientists come to the rescue. In this case these chemists are called "flavorists". No, I'm not making this stuff up.
Once you realize that flavor is where it's at and that flavor is mostly an olfactory experience that we cause as we chew our food and gases are released which we smell, and if we are pleased we eat and keep going back to eat more. No matter whether the food is healthy or not, as long as it "tastes good" we are going back for more.
Most natural flavors are not natural at all, and the reason a product would need natural flavors added tells you "the processing" has "screwed"with your food or drink. That incredible taste of your Vanilla Swiss Almond ice cream probably started out as a bacterial protein.
You may say, "Well, at least it is at the bottom of the ingredient list". The truth is that it only takes an infantesimal amount of natural flavor to trick your olfactory senses. Since the ingredients are listed in order of amount in a product, natural flavors is usually at the bottom.
The American Flavor Industry is a 1.4 Billion dollar a year industry!!!
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