Faux Natural
Ice Cream maker BEN & JERRY'S confirmed that after receiving a request from the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSWPI) all BEN & JERRY'S Ice Cream labels will no longer include the phrase "all natural" . The change, according to company spokerpersons, will occur gradually, over time.
The Food & Drug Administration (FDA) itself provides no definition for "natural", a complaint of the CSWPI. The FDA allows use of the term as long as a food product does not contain either artificial flavors or colors, or synthetics. The CPSWPI asked BEN & JERRY'S to remove the term because CSWPI believes the term creates consumer confursion if a product contains alkalized cocoa, corn syrup, hydrogenated oil or other non-natural ingredients.
BEN & JERRY'S spokespersons asserted there would be no change of its ice cream products' ingredients but wants to avoid disputes and possible misperceptions over the term "all natural" which is ambiguous enough to mean different things to various of its customers.
CSWPI called upon the FDA to prepare and issue a formal definition of "natural" for businesses to follow.
BEN & JERRY'S is currently a unit of the consumer product giant Unilever.
