Source: Chris Scott, MEATINGPLACE, 6/16/14


Consumer Reports is working with a social action organization to ban use of the word “natural” on food packaging following a survey indicating that nearly 60 percent of consumers check to see if a product is “natural” without independent verification of that being the case.

The Consumer Reports survey also found that more than 80 percent of consumers believe that packaged foods that use the word “natural” on the label should have food that do not contain artificial ingredients (87 percent), are grown without pesticides (86 percent) and do not contain genetically modified organisms (GMOs) (85 percent). The survey indicates that consumers believe the use of the word carries more impact than the more narrowly defined standards used by regulators.

The organization is launching an effort with TakePart to close that perception gap by banning use of the word “natural” on food labels to prevent confusion among consumers.

Consumer Reports notes that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not yet developed a formal definition for use of the word “natural” on food labels or other derivatives of the term. The research group adds, however, that the FDA and the USDA both allow use of the word if no artificial ingredients or color additives were used to create the products.

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