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- -As far as the over weight population: as a nutrition educator the industry is not to blame. It is the individual. I push portion size and conscious eating; very simple self control. It is much easier to point a finger rather than express physical activity.
-I dream of becoming a flavorist like a drummer dreams of stardom. As stated above: The flavorists enact an evolutionary trait of desire in both healthy and unhealthy products; masking the dull quality of safe quality foods and aiding the consumption of healthy alternatives. Much greater positive skew.
Consumers miss the point that they have the ability to control the market by not purchasing a product (Free Market Enterprise). Consumers also have the ability to control the amount they consume.
As food scientists we are just doing a job, supporting our family, following a passion, and providing what consumers want: Safe, delicious, healthy, and convenient foods. - Reply to this comment
- It's a huge problem to a parent trying to get a child to eat a real piece of fruit when they have eaten candy and the real thing is not as sweet. Real food doesn't taste as appealing - but it should. It's up to us as individuals to change what we buy.
The only way to eat good quality is to buy whole foods and cook with whole foods. Cooking real food is quality - it has the ability to change our quality of life. - Reply to this comment
- I think it always come down to a balance. I don't think we can place all of the blame on the food industry for wanting to make their food taste great. I think we, as consumers, have to have the motivation and discipline to be able to control how much we eat and to stay healthy. I use a great resource called Natural Standard, which has a health and wellness database, where I can look up a ton of information on staying healthy and about different types of diets as well.
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- Flavoring foods is an industry. Industry is driven by making money to survive in a tough economy. The practice of food makers adding flavoring to make the product more acceptable to the customer has been going on long before the expansion of the nations waistline. I don't think it is acceptable to place the sole blame for the obesity epidemic on the shoulders of the flavoring industry or the food industry for that matter. The companies are just doing what any company would do to make money, even if it is not in your best interest. The vague idea that a natural flavoring is better for you is also obscure. It should be required that sources or ingredients of "natural flavorings" bee disclosed. Then from here we could use viable sources, such as Natural Standard, a database on integrative medicine to make informative decisions on what we want to put in our bodies.
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- I'm a food scientist (BS in 1992) and flavor chemist. I studied food science to learn more about food and had a goal to provide healthy/non-cancer causing food to the consumer. Most of us involved in Food Production are good people, with families. We are concerned about health & safety. In my career, I have learned to trust the largest companies most. They don't cut corners at a safety expense or mis-label. My concern with our society and food, is that we are too busy. We don't cook or teach our children how to cook. When I was in 4-H in the 80's, we were teased in school. 4H taught me about how to prepare food & agriculture. Do they still have home economics in school? Do they still have Physical Education? Where are our priorities as a nation? Flavor chemists love food, cooking, eating and providing for the consumer.
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- This story blamed the flavor scientists at Givaudan for making Americans fat. Morley Safer also said the company operates all around the world.
So then, how come only Americans got so fat from Givaudan flavors, and not the rest of the world?
Givaudan is based in Europe and operates in Asia and Africa, but people in those places are no where near as fat as those here in the U.S.A. - Reply to this comment
- 1. I agree with the comment that the synthetically produced chemicals are the same structurally as the natural-source chemicals and should not be solely criticized for the fact that it isn't "natural". However, when specific components of food are extracted and then hodgepodged together, I think some crucial nutrition from the original source is lost. Researchers have only uncovered the tip of the iceberg for many already delicious spices and herbs with regards to their inherent health benefits. You can learn more about these potential health boosters, such as cinnamon, nutmeg, garlic, turmeric, and more at Natural Standard, a database on integrative medicine. We may begin to more thoroughly enjoy these natural flavors if we reduce our intake of the "flavor-enhanced" foods (for example, fruit tastes less sweet and satisfying after you regularly overload on candy).
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- Using great taste to put into processed foods or not so tasty foods hides the fact that we are eating bad quality food or food not necessarily healthy for us. It's like the process of using positive reinforcement when teaching an animal. So many people are trying to find a scapegoat to blame for the alarming increase in incidence of obesity. What about lack of exercise, not choosing the right foods, over eating, and many other reasons are also the causes. I saw on Natural Standard a great regimen on how to start exercising and what a healthy diet really consists of. You can see that exercise does not mean just walking, although that's what the lay public believes. People should be at the very least briskly walking or people could try doing something more engaging, like tennis.
Individual responsibility should be taken into consideration. It's like someone saying it is Givaudon's fault for making me addicted to Cheetos and therefore making me fat. Yes the food industry is trying to make things taste good, but it is also up to the individual to know when to stop or think twice about what they are eating, how much they are eating, why they are eating it, etc. Not choosing the right foods is not the sole reason as to why people are obese. - Reply to this comment
- Where is Michele Obama when you need her? Would be interested in hearing what she has to say when her spouse accepts campaign money from big-food companies. Besides, this stuff is gross. I continue to tell my kids, no boxed food for us. Big-food is as bad as big-pharma.
These people are on a mission to make the unsuspecting obese and continue to drive up health care costs to further support big-pharma and big-government healthcare. What a sick cycle we are on. Thanks for exposing some truth on the matter. Killed my appetite. - Reply to this comment
- So this is the next Monsanto. Food Processing is the down fall of American with spiraling health care cost as it's running mate.
Fruits and vegetables was the answer to this madness but then they have been assaulted as well by corrupt corporate greed.
Science at it's worst, bye bye American Pie. - Reply to this comment
