Grocers in the United States want the government to define
the meaning of “natural” for food.
The Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA) is asking the
U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to more clearly define the term. The
FDA has been seeking public comment.
“The criteria used to determine if a food qualifies for a
‘natural’ claim should focus primarily on whether the product’s ingredients are
synthetic/artificial or natural and on the degree of processing the ingredients
have undergone,” GMA’s lawyer, Karin Moore, said in a statement.
Farming and agricultural methods used in the production of a
crop, including pesticide or herbicide use, the use of biotech seeds, or animal
husbandry practices such as “free range” or “grass fed” should not have a
bearing on the “natural” status of a food or ingredient, GMA said.
