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Travis McGee 09-10-2014 08:49 PM

Flavors fuel food industry, but remain a mystery
 

Flavors fuel food industry, but remain a mystery

Published Thursday, Oct. 9, 2014 | 7:26 a.m.

Updated 5 hours, 19 minutes ago

NEW YORK (AP) — They help give Coke its distinctive bite and Doritos its
cheesy kick. But the artificial and natural flavors used to rev up the
taste of processed foods remain a mystery to most Americans.

"Artificial and natural flavors" have become ubiquitous terms on food
labels, helping create vivid tastes that would otherwise be lost in mass
production. As the science behind them advances, however, some are
calling for greater transparency about their safety and ingredients.

Last month, five consumer and environmental groups sent a letter to the
Food and Drug Administration expressing their concern about the flavor
industry, which determines the safety of its own ingredients. The letter
noted that safety is sometimes declared based on scientific data that
isn't publicly available.

"If we're eating the stuff, it shouldn't be such a secret," said Lisa
Lefferts, senior scientist at Center for Science in the Public Interest,
a nutrition advocacy group that was among those who sent the letter.

The call for more transparency comes as Americans pay closer attention
to what they eat. In some cases, they're petitioning companies to remove
chemicals. Many food scientists say the fears are unfounded because the
unfamiliar ingredients often just mimic chemical structures found in
nature or are used in trace amounts. But complaints have prompted
companies including PepsiCo and Subway to reformulate recipes.

As a result of the attention given to chemicals and ingredients as a
whole, artificial and flavors are starting to get attention as well. But
they can be frustrating because people often have no clue what's in them.

"Natural flavors can mean whatever," said Sara Budowsky, a New York City
resident who runs a vegan eating website and has become more aware added
flavors. "I've always been curious when I see that last part of the
ingredient list."

INVISIBLE INGREDIENT

The FDA says natural flavors have to be derived from ingredients like
fruit, meat or spices, and obtained through processes like distillation
or fermentation. Artificial flavors can be made chemically, say, by
mixing an alcohol with a fat.

It seems straightforward, but the sophistication involved in making them
varies broadly. Some may just be a blend of spices, while others create
the illusion that a product contains certain ingredients, like grapes.
Flavors can also conjure cooking styles.

With frozen dinners, for instance, "natural flavors" are often used to
give the impression the meat was grilled or roasted.

"A company can't grill all that meat," said Terry Miesle, a senior
flavorist who specializes in savory tastes at Innova Flavors in the
Chicago area. "But flavors can mimic the chemical process of cooking."

A flavorist might use materials like beef stock, fats and sugar to
ignite the reactions to create the "grilled" taste, he said.

Tracking the size of the flavor industry is difficult in part because
food companies may have their own flavorists. But consulting firm
Leffingwell & Associates estimates the global industry at about $23.91
billion, up 19 percent from $20 billion in 2000.

About half that was for flavors in foods, while the rest was for
fragrances, said John Leffingwell, the firm's founder and a former
flavorist who helped invent Sunkist.

Big flavor makers including Givaudan, Symrise and International Flavors
& Fragrances declined to make representatives available.

FLAVOR ADVANCEMENTS

The safety of flavors is determined by the Flavor and Extract
Manufacturers Association, an industry trade group. In any given year,
FEMA may declare as few as 10 or as many as 100 to be safe, said John
Hallagan, the association's senior adviser and general counsel.

In all, FEMA says it has found around 3,000 different flavors to be
safe. They're usually used in minute quantities, typically far less than
1 percent of a product.

Even so, disclosing their ingredients would likely attract more consumer
complaints for companies, which are already facing pressure over
ingredients.

Last year, a petition noted an ingredient in Subway's bread,
azodicarbonamide, is also used in yoga mats. Subway removed the
ingredient, even though it is widely used in other breads. PepsiCo
removed an ingredient from Gatorade after a petition by a teenager
linked to a flame retardant.

The groups asking the FDA to look into the flavor industry don't
necessarily think the ingredients in flavors should be listed on
packaging, since the chemical names would be meaningless to most. But
companies might post information online or elsewhere, said Erik Olson of
the Natural Resources Defense Council, one of the groups that sent the
letter to the FDA.

A representative for the FDA said the agency is looking into the
concerns raised by the groups.

In the meantime, flavors are opening up new possibilities.

Senomyx, based in California, makes ingredients that interact with taste
receptors to block or amplify attributes like sweetness. They have no
taste or smell but are listed as artificial flavors.

Senomyx recently said it expects one of its ingredients that allows for
the reduction of sugar and high fructose corn syrup to be used in
products this year. PepsiCo, which has exclusive rights to use it in
non-alcoholic drinks, declined to comment.

David E. Ross[_2_] 10-10-2014 03:14 AM

Flavors fuel food industry, but remain a mystery
 
Have you ever noticed that furniture polish contains real lemon but
lemon drop candies are artificially flavored?

gregz 10-10-2014 08:25 AM

Flavors fuel food industry, but remain a mystery
 
Travis McGee > wrote:
> Flavors fuel food industry, but remain a mystery
>
> Published Thursday, Oct. 9, 2014 | 7:26 a.m.
>
> Updated 5 hours, 19 minutes ago
>
> NEW YORK (AP) €” They help give Coke its distinctive bite and Doritos its
> cheesy kick. But the artificial and natural flavors used to rev up the
> taste of processed foods remain a mystery to most Americans.


I noticed a can of coke messed up the compass in my Boat.

Iron..

Greg

Helpful person 10-10-2014 02:49 PM

Flavors fuel food industry, but remain a mystery
 
On Friday, October 10, 2014 3:25:19 AM UTC-4, gregz wrote:
>
> I noticed a can of coke messed up the compass in my Boat.
>
> Iron..
>
> Greg


You sure it's not the water?

http://www.richardfisher.com

brooklyn1 10-10-2014 05:22 PM

Flavors fuel food industry, but remain a mystery
 
On Fri, 10 Oct 2014 07:25:19 +0000 (UTC), gregz >
wrote:

>Travis McGee > wrote:
>> Flavors fuel food industry, but remain a mystery
>>
>> Published Thursday, Oct. 9, 2014 | 7:26 a.m.
>>
>> Updated 5 hours, 19 minutes ago
>>
>> NEW YORK (AP) — They help give Coke its distinctive bite and Doritos its
>> cheesy kick. But the artificial and natural flavors used to rev up the
>> taste of processed foods remain a mystery to most Americans.

>
>I noticed a can of coke messed up the compass in my Boat.
>
>Iron..
>
>Greg


The last time Coke was in a steel can you probably weren't born yet.


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