‘Natural’ Label on Food Misleading

Consumer Reports magazine is urging its readers to sign a petition supporting the limitation of “natural” labeling on food.

The magazine says the “natural” label offers no clear meaning and often misleads consumers. Sixty percent of Americans buy products labeled “natural” and more than two-thirds of Americans think the labeling means more than it does, CBS reported.

“In fact, they think it means no artificial ingredients or colors, no GMOs, for example, no pesticides for meat, they think it means no drugs. .. and it doesn’t mean any of those things,” said Urvashi Rangan, director of consumer safety and sustainability at Consumer Reports.

The magazine released a story Wednesday featuring seven products with the “natural” labeling, including Del Monte Fruit Natural Snacks. The fruit snacks, the magazine notes, include preservatives made from industrial chemicals. Consumer Reports also spotlighted Wesson Vegetable Oil, which is advertised as “Pure & 100% Natural,” but is made from genetically modified soybeans that are made to withstand herbicides, CBS reported.

The inconsistent labels are not illegal, Rangan said, because the FDA has “nothing on the books” that gives a clear definition of what “natural” really means.

“What we’re saying is that the lack of government standards allows companies to label in a misleading way and we’ve been able to document that the majority of consumers are being misled on the market,” Rangan said.