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Add MSG to a soup, file it under "natural flavor," and the label is misbranded. "Flavor enhancer," "flavor modifier," "flavor booster." On a supplier sheet the three read as synonyms, yet each one leads to a different ingredient statement. A ...

Two people can taste the same raspberry juice and describe two different drinks. One gets violets. The other gets something sour, soapy, a little chemical. Both had the same sample at the same dose, and the difference sits in one ...

Your creatine iced tea passed the spec sheet. Then someone took a sip. Creatine and prebiotics sell the label. The second sip decides whether anyone buys the drink again. Creatine monohydrate does not dissolve easily. About 14 g dissolves in ...

A FEMA GRAS number on a flavor spec is not an FDA approval. FDA receives the data but does not formally review the decision. "FEMA GRAS No. 2286" is a typical line. 2286 is cinnamaldehyde, the molecule behind cinnamon, and ...

Your lemon soda does not lose its lemon on the shelf. It turns it into something worse. The bright lemon note in a soda or an iced tea comes mostly from citral, an aldehyde made of two isomers, neral and ...

The ingredient that keeps landing this label claim in court is not a flavor. It is malic acid. "No artificial flavors." Next time that line shows up on a front panel or a supplier spec, it helps to know how ...