OBSESSED NATURALFoodie

For people who read the back of the box

Natural on a label means almost nothing.

Here's what the words on food packaging are actually allowed to mean: which ones have rules behind them, which ones don't, and how to read a box in thirty seconds.

Open the label decoder The 30-second read

Three claims, decoded

Every claim gets the same panel, borrowed from the one part of the package that's legally required to tell the truth.

  • Claim Facts

    Found on: most packaged foods

    “Natural”

    Not formally defined

    Who sets the rule
    The FDA has no formal definition. Its long-standing policy is that nothing artificial or synthetic, including any added colour whatever its source, has been added that wouldn't normally be expected in the food.
    What it guarantees
    Very little. Roughly: no added artificial colours or synthetic ingredients the FDA would object to.
    What it doesn't
    How the food was grown or processed, pesticide use, GMO status, or anything about nutrition.

    The single most-used word on a label is one of the least meaningful.

  • Claim Facts

    Found on: any food

    USDA Organic

    Regulated

    Who sets the rule
    USDA National Organic Program, through accredited certifiers.
    What it guarantees
    “100% organic” means all organic ingredients; “organic” means at least 95%; “made with organic ___” means at least 70%. Most synthetic pesticides and fertilisers are prohibited, with a limited list of approved exceptions.
    What it doesn't
    Pesticide-free, more nutritious, local, or small-scale.

    One of the few front-of-pack claims with real auditing behind it.

  • Claim Facts

    Found on: snacks, bars, cereals

    “Made with real fruit”

    Not formally defined

    Who sets the rule
    No required minimum amount for a claim like this in most cases.
    What it guarantees
    Some fruit, in some form, is in there.
    What it doesn't
    How much. It can be a small amount, or a concentrate or powder.

    Find the fruit in the ingredient list. Its position tells you more than the front.

All eleven claims

Three kinds of claim

  • Regulated

    A government agency sets what the claim means and it can be enforced.

  • Not formally defined

    No official definition. The words mean whatever a reasonable shopper might take them to mean, which isn't much.

  • Private certification

    A private organisation publishes a standard and checks against it. Worth something, and not the same as a law.

Not a diet. Not a fear list.

This site doesn't tell you what to eat, doesn't call ingredients “toxic”, and doesn't use the word “clean”. Plenty of long ingredient lists are fine and plenty of short ones aren't. The point is knowing what you're buying, not being scared of it.

Recipes arrive when a person has actually cooked and tested them. There are none here yet, and we would rather have none than publish ones nobody made.

One label, decoded, now and then

Only when a new claim shows up in the aisle or a rule changes.

Form's not hooked up yet. It won't send until the list is live.