The Code of Federal Regulations definition of "natural flavor": "The term natural flavor or natural flavoring means the essential oil, oleoresin, essence or ex

The Code of Federal Regulations definition of "natural flavor": "The term natural flavor or natural flavoring means the essential oil, oleoresin, essence or extractive, protein hydrolysate, distillate, or any product of roasting, heating or enzymolysis, which contains the flavoring constituents derived from a spice, fruit or fruit juice, vegetable or vegetable juice, edible yeast, herb, bark, bud, root, leaf or similar plant material, meat, seafood, poultry, eggs, dairy products, or fermentation products thereof, whose significant function in food is flavoring rather than nutritional. Natural flavors include the natural essence or extractives obtained from plants listed in 182.10, 182.20, 182.40, and 182.50 and part 184 of this chapter, and the substances listed in 172.510 of this chapter." [1] "Natural flavor" is a nightmare for me. The above definition allows huge numbers of substances that most would not regard "natural". Among those, autolyzed yeast (autolysis is a kind of enzymolysis), hydrolyzed soy protein, and numerous other sources of free glutamic acid (aka "MSG") appear to be permitted. These wreak havoc on my stomach. Thus any food containing "natural flavor" is instantly suspect and has the chance of causing me incredible digestive distress. For those interested in MSG intolerance, I have found the list at [2] to be reliable. [1] http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/cfcfr/cfrsearch.cfm?fr=101.22 http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/cfcfr/cfrs... [2] http://www.truthinlabeling.org/hiddensources.html http://www.truthinlabeling.org/hiddensources.html