Despite what you might think (or hope), it doesn’t mean organic, minimally processed or healthy.
Take a stroll through your local supermarket. You’ll be hard-pressed to find a box, bag or bottle that isn’t covered with labels touting the food’s nutritional merits. Among the most confusing labels are “natural,” “made with 100 percent natural ingredients” and “all natural.”
But what do those labels actually mean? Largely, whatever the food manufacturer – and its marketing division – want it to mean, says Marion Nestle, a professor of nutrition, food studies and public health at New York University and author of “Food Politics.”
While no regulatory agency has settled on a definition of “natural,” the U.S. Food and Drug Administration does have some parameters food manufactures must follow when using the term, says FDA spokeswoman Jennifer Corbett Dooren. The administration considers “natural” to mean the food does not contain added colors, artificial flavors or synthetic substances.
Fortunately for food manufacturers – and unfortunately for consumers – that leaves a lot of wiggle room, says registered dietitian Wesley Delbridge, a spokeswoman for the Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics.
Foods that sport a “natural” label can contain added sugar, trans fats and genetically modified ingredients, or GMOs. They aren’t necessarily organic, grass-fed or free-range. They can be deep-fried, covered in icing or filled with artificial ingredients, he says. No, “artificial” and “synthetic” do not actually mean the same thing.
“At present, the word ‘natural’ in food marketing is meaningless, and that’s the way food companies want it,” says Gary Ruskin, executive director of U.S. Right to Know, a nonprofit organization that promotes transparency within the food industry. “It’s a swindle. It’s a scam. It’s a term crafty marketers use to make you buy something.”
It’s working. One 2014 Harris Interactive survey found that 62 percent of supermarket shoppers seek out “natural,” “all natural” or “100 percent natural” when selecting nutritious choices. And in another 2014 survey, this one from Consumer Reports, about two-thirds of respondents said they believe the term “natural” means that a food has no artificial ingredients, pesticides or genetically modified organisms.
As such, a new study published in the Journal of Public Policy & Marketing shows that consumers are increasingly filing lawsuits against food manufacturers using the term “natural.” In 2009, 30 percent of newly launched foods claimed to be natural but by 2013 this dropped to 22 percent, possibly due to an increase in the number of consumer lawsuits,” wrote the authors, explaining that “lawyers are increasingly willing to take cases which regulatory agencies have abandoned.”
In 2014, in response to a series of lawsuits over “natural,” the FDA said it didn’t have the resources to devote to defining the term once and for all. The administration’s letter to the courts explains, “At present, priority food public health and safety matters are largely occupying the limited resources that FDA has to address foods matters … Because, especially in the foods arena, FDA operates in a world of limited resources, we necessarily must prioritize which issues to address.”
Still, as many advocates for food-labeling transparency, such as U.S. Right to Know, point out: Defining “natural” shouldn’t be so difficult. “Over time, the FDA is going to have to come up with a definition for ‘natural,’” says Delbridge, who notes that “organic” was also thrown around loosely until the United States Department of Agriculture formally defined the term in 1990.
However, when it comes to foods at the supermarket, “natural” is actually a bit of a misnomer, Nestle says. “Virtually all commercial foods, fresh or packaged, undergo some degree of processing.” So where do you draw the line?
How “Natural” Is Your Food?
For now, it’s up to consumers to determine what’s natural enough, Ruskin says. And, while avoiding added colors, artificial flavors and synthetic substances – all which aren’t allowed in foods labeled “natural” – is a good first step, if you really want to eat natural, it’s not enough, according to Delbridge.
“Turn over the package and read its nutrition facts,” he says. “Look at the ingredients. Buy foods with ingredients you recognize and steer clear of huge labels with long lists of ingredients you don’t recognize. It typically means it is highly processed, the manufacturers just got around using added colors, artificial flavors and synthetic substances.”
However, he warns against equating packaged with processed foods. While many packaged foods are indeed highly processed with additives, some are not. Take, for instance, some packages of whole grains such as quinoa or barley. “You might look on the back and it will only have one ingredient – the grain,” he says. Packaged? Yes. Processed? No. It’s in its whole, original form.
Whether your food comes in a box, from behind the meat counter or stacked in a produce bin, “When you start eating foods in their whole state, that’s when you really start eating more natural,” Delbridge says.
Written for Health.USnews.com