Identifying Natural Flavors on Packaging
Under certain circumstances, natural flavors must be identified prominently on your packaging’s principal display panel
Natural flavors are ubiquitous in foods today, and chances are, at least one of the products that your company manufactures contains them. But what are they, and how should they be identified on your packaging?
Natural flavors are defined at Code of Federal Regulations, 21, 101.22(a)(3) as “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.”
In short, a natural flavor is a substance the purpose of which is simply to add flavor, which is extracted from a food through one of a certain number of processes.
The astute among you may be asking yourself right now, “Why are so many consumers critical of natural flavors? From this definition, they seem pretty natural to me.”
Read Jennifer's full article in Quality Assurance & Food Safety magazine.
