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What does “natural” mean? One more time.<http://www.foodpolitics.com/2016/01/what-does-natural-mean-one-more-time/>

Posted: 28 Jan 2016 01:36 PM PST

I’ve written repeatedly about the problem of “natural”<http://www.foodpolitics.com/?s=natural> on food labels, but the issue just doesn’t go away.  It won’t, until the FDA decides to rule on what it means.

Now Consumer Reports has done a survey<http://www.foodpolitics.com/wp-content/uploads/Consumer-Reports-Natural-Food-Labels-Survey-Report.pdf> of public understanding of the term.

The survey reveals that 62% of respondents want foods to be “natural.”   When they see the claim on a food package, they believe it has been verified independently.  Oops.

They also believe that “natural” means no artificial ingredients (correct, according to the FDA’s non-definition) or GMOs (incorrect).  The survey confirms the idea that many people think “natural” is the same as “organic,” which it is not.

Consumers, says Consumer Reports<http://www.foodpolitics.com/wp-content/uploads/Consumer-Reports_Natural-Labels-1.pdf>, are naturally confused.  And why wouldn’t we be, given the products labeled as “natural” (see the examples collected by Consumer Reports<http://www.foodpolitics.com/wp-content/uploads/Consumer-Reports_Natural-Labels-1.pdf>).

The FDA is currently collecting its own comments on this issue.  You can weigh in until May 15.<http://www.fda.gov/Food/GuidanceRegulation/GuidanceDocumentsRegulatoryInformation/LabelingNutrition/ucm456090.htm>  Please do.


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