I read an article around 10 years ago that said that orange juice has flavoring/fragrance that is not listed on the package and thats why all the oj from each brand always tasted the same. That was the start of me going down the food rabbit hole lol. I mean, if they do it to oj they can do it to anything, right?
This is not the same article i read, but same info.
Haven’t you ever wondered why every glass of Tropicana Pure Premium orange juice tastes the same, no matter where in the world you buy it or what time of year you’re drinking it in? Or maybe your brand of choice is Minute Maid or Simply Orange or Florida’s Natural. Either way, I can ask the same question. Why is the taste and flavor so consistent? Why is it that the Minute Maid never tastes like the Tropicana, but always tastes like its own unique beverage.
When the juice is stripped of oxygen it is also stripped of flavor providing chemicals. Juice companies therefore hire flavor and fragrance companies, the same ones that formulate perfumes for Dior and Calvin Klein, to engineer flavor packs to add back to the juice to make it taste fresh. Flavor packs aren’t listed as an ingredient on the label because technically they are derived from orange essence and oil. Yet those in the industry will tell you that the flavor packs, whether made for reconstituted or pasteurized orange juice, resemble nothing found in nature. The packs added to juice earmarked for the North American market tend to contain high amounts of ethyl butyrate, a chemical in the fragrance of fresh squeezed orange juice that, juice companies have discovered, Americans favor. Mexicans and Brazilians have a different palate. Flavor packs fabricated for juice geared to these markets therefore highlight different chemicals, the decanals say, or terpene compounds such as valencine.
The formulas vary to give a brand’s trademark taste. If you’re discerning you may have noticed Minute Maid has a candy like orange flavor. That’s largely due to the flavor pack Coca-Cola has chosen for it. Some companies have even been known to request a flavor pack that mimics the taste of a popular competitor, creating a “hall of mirrors” of flavor packs. Despite the multiple interpretations of a freshly squeezed orange on the market, most flavor packs have a shared source of inspiration: a Florida Valencia orange in spring. (
source)
WHY AREN’T THESE FLAVOR PACKS LISTED AS INGREDIENTS?
Good question! As with all industrial foods, it’s because of our convoluted labeling laws. You see, these “flavor packs are made from orange by-products — even though these ‘by-products’ are so chemically manipulated that they hardly qualify as ‘by-products’ any more.” (
source) Since they’re made from by-products that originated in oranges, they can be added to the orange juice without being considered an “ingredient,” despite the fact that they are chemically altered.
EDITED ON 7/29/2011 TO INCLUDE:
I’ve gotten a number of comments and emails accusing me of being afraid of “science” or “chemicals.” To those readers, I suggest that you are missing my point entirely. As I wrote in a comment below, I think what bugs me the most about the flavor industry is that
they manufacture flavor for otherwise flavorless or unpalatable foods. I think if a food
needs to have synthetic flavors added to it for us to enjoy it, then we ought to question whether or not it’s actually good for us and worth eating. It’s not so much that I think the flavors are unnaturally engineered chemicals (although sometimes, as with MSG, there is cause for concern). In this post,
I’m not questioning the health or merit of added chemicals (“natural” or “synthetic”); I’m questioning the health or merit of so-called foods that are so devoid of flavor or color that we have to add back in chemical flavorings and colors to make them palatable. Furthermore, I’m questioning the judgement of our regulatory bodies which allow misleading product labeling to continue.
Do you buy orange juice at the store? If you do, I'm sure you're careful to buy the kind that's 100% juice and not made from concentrate. After all, that's the healthier kind, right? The more natural kind? The kind without any additives? The kind that's sold in the refrigerator section so it...
www.foodrenegade.com
Other day at the store i saw they had 0 calorie alfredo sauce and the ingredients was just entirely chemicals like flavorings and titanium dioxide. No i didnt buy it lol.
About msg and all its names, years ago i read "excitotoxins the taste that kills" by dr. Blaylock and he said that these chemicals excite the brain cells to the point that they can die.
What do monosodium glutamate (MSG), hydrolyzed vegetable protein and Aspartame (Nutrasweet) all have in common? They are all common taste-enhancing additives found in a variety of foods and beverages, and they all contain Excitotoxins. In his book,
Excitotoxins --- The Taste That Kills, Dr. Russell L. Blaylock provides an extensive review of the literature supporting his hypothesis that these excitatory amino acids can promote death of neurons in the brain and spinal cord.
Dr. Blaylock defines excitotoxins as a "group of excitatory amino acids that can cause sensitive neurons to die." The most common ones are glutamate, aspartate, and cysteine...
He also points out new labeling guidelines promulgated by the FDA allow many of these excitotoxins to be disguised using such benign sounding names as "natural flavoring." This makes it even more difficult for the consumer to tell what the product actually contains.
Take a look at the list of food additives that contain MSG always (Blaylock, p. 255):
- Monosodium Glutamate
- Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein
- Hydrolyzed Protein
- Hydrolyzed Plant Protein
- Plant Protein Extract
- Sodium Caseinate
- Calcium Caseinate
- Yeast Extract
- Textured Protein
- Autolyzed Yeast
- Hydrolyzed Oat Flour
Now take a look at additives that frequently contain MSG (meaning, you can’t tell from the label because legally it might):
- Malt Extract
- Malt Flavoring
- Bouillon
- Broth
- Stock
- Flavoring
- Natural Flavoring
- Natural Beef or Chicken Flavoring
- Seasoning
- Spices
www.eatingforyourhealth.org