A flavoring (or flavouring), also known as flavor (or flavour) or flavorant, is a food additive that is used to improve the taste or smell of food. It changes the perceptual impression of food as determined primarily by the chemoreceptors of the gustatory and olfactory systems.Small DM, Green BG. "A Proposed Model of a Flavor Modality ". In: Murray MM, Wallace MT, editors. The Neural Bases of Multisensory Processes. Boca Raton (FL): CRC Press/Taylor & Francis; 2012. Chapter 36. Along with additives, other components, like sugars, determine the taste of food.
A flavoring is defined as a substance that gives another substance taste, altering the characteristics of the solute, causing it to become sweet, sour, tangy, etc. Although the term, in common language, denotes the combined chemical sensations of taste and smell, the same term is used in the fragrance and flavors industry to refer to edible chemicals and extracts that alter the flavor of food and food products through the sense of smell.
Owing to the high cost, or unavailability, of natural flavor extracts, most commercial flavorings are "nature-identical", which means that they are the chemical equivalent of natural flavors, but chemically synthesized rather than having been extracted from source materials. Identification of components of natural foods, for example a raspberry, may be done using technology such as headspace techniques, so the flavorist can imitate the flavor by using a few of the same chemicals present. In the EU legislation, the term "natural-identical flavoring" does not exist. The legislation is specified on what is a "flavoring" and a "natural flavoring".
Definition A flavoring is a volatile additive that improves the taste or smell of food. They work primarily via the sense of smell. In legislation, substances that exclusively have a sweet, sour or salty taste are not considered flavorings. These usually include flavor enhancers, sweeteners, acidulants and salt substitutes.
There are different ways to divide flavorings. First by the way they are produced. A vanilla flavoring can for example be obtained naturally by extraction from vanilla seeds, or one can start with cheap chemicals and try to make a similar substance artificially (in this example vanillin). A nature-identical flavoring is chemically an exact copy of the original substance and can be either natural or artificial. Vanillin is neither obtained from the vanilla plant nor an exact copy of vanilla, but a synthesized nature-identical component of the vanilla aroma. Vanillin is not vanilla, but gives a food a vanilla aroma.
The second division is by the effect they have on smell (aroma) or taste of the food. The effect can be the aroma of a specific fruit, almond, butter, smoke from wood, or some fantasy flavor. The aroma of the flavoring may resemble that of the source, or imitate a particular unrelated food. It may for example be the extract from vanilla seeds and smell like vanilla, or it may be the extract of a potato and smell like a banana. Irrespective of the effect, the flavoring may be natural or artificial. It may for example be the natural tissue of an animal with the aroma of a citrus, or just a chemical that smells like a citrus.
Division by production method Flavorings can be divided into three principal types: "natural flavorings", "nature-identical flavorings", and "artificial flavorings".Flavourings and Flavour Enhancers — User Guide, August 2002. The Australia and New Zealand Food Standards Code (archived) In the United States, they are traditionally divided into natural and artificial flavorings, where the latter includes nature-identical flavorings. In contrast, European legislation does not distinguish natural and nature-identical flavorings, while only the term "natural" is subject to some regulation.
Natural flavorings The FDA defines a "natural flavor" as an "essential oil, oleoresin, essence or extractive, protein hydrolysate, distillate, or any product of roasting, heating or enzymolysis," derived from a plant and/or animal source.
Though the flavors themselves must come from natural sources, solvents and emulsifiers can be used to extract them without needing to be disclosed as ingredients. Other techniques to obtain natural flavorings include the use of enzymes and/or microorganisms.
Natural flavorings can also be produced by genetically modified organisms (GMOs) – not found in nature. Natural flavorings can be isolated on industrial scale, to be used as an additive.
Nature-identical flavorings Nature-identical flavorings are human-made aroma compounds that are chemically identical to some substance that can be found in nature. They are synthesized from chemicals or isolated by means of chemical processes.
Because nature-identical flavorings can be produced at low costs, the food industry will argue that nature-identical and natural flavorings are exactly the same. They have the advantage to be chemically pure, without allergens that may be coupled with natural flavorings. On the other hand, they are missing the synergy of other substances present in their natural origin, so they may lack subtlety.
Artificial flavorings Artificial flavorings are synthesized from chemical substances by humans and are not found in nature. Their sensory characteristics mostly resemble that of natural or nature-identical flavorings.
Perception of flavorings Aromas are the volatile components of the food. The aroma is determined by the aroma compounds it contains and the personal ability to detect them. While an aroma primarily acts through the olfactory system, it also affects the taste at the same time.
Along with additives, other components, like sugars, determine the taste of food. The trigeminal nerves, which detect chemical irritants in the mouth and throat, as well as temperature and texture, are also important to the overall perception of food.
Mechanism Flavors from food products are usually the result of a combination of natural flavors, which set up the basic smell profile of a food product, while artificial flavors modify the smell to accent it.
Unlike smelling, which occurs upon inhalation, the sensing of flavors in the mouth occurs in the exhalation phase of breathing and is perceived differently by an individual. In other words, the smell of food is different depending on whether one is smelling it before or after it has entered one's mouth.
Taste The taste of a food product is determined not only by the aromas present in the original material and added flavorings, but also by accompanying substances, like flavor enhancers, sweeteners, acidulants and salt substitutes. Polyols, like sorbitol and maltitol, are carriers in flavorings, but they themselves also have a sweet taste.
Even the color of food can affect one's experience of the taste significantly. In one study, adding more red color to a drink increased the perceived sweetness, with darker colored solutions being rated 2–10% better than lighter ones, though it had 1% less sucrose concentration. Food manufacturers exploit this phenomenon; for example, different colors of the U.S. product Froot Loops cereal and most brands of Gummy Bears often use the same flavorings.
Flavor enhancers
Flavor enhancers or taste enhancers, which are umami or "savory" compounds, are themselves not flavorings, but they intensify the taste of the food. They are largely based on amino acids and nucleotides. These are typically used as sodium or calcium salts. Umami flavorings recognized and approved by the European Union include:
Acid saltsDescriptionGlutamic acid saltsThis amino acid's sodium salt, monosodium glutamate (MSG), is one of the most commonly used flavor enhancers in food processing. Mono- and diglutamate salts are also commonly used.Glycine saltsSimple amino acid salts typically combined with glutamic acid as flavor enhancersGuanylic acid (GMP) saltsNucleotide salts typically combined with glutamic acid as flavor enhancersInosinic acid (IMP) saltsNucleotide salts created from the breakdown of AMP. Due to high costs of production, typically combined with glutamic acid as flavor enhancers5'-ribonucleotide saltsA blend of GMP and IMP salts ("I+G"), generally in the disodium ribonucleotides form; typically combined with amino acids flavor enhancers
Regulations In Europe Under the EU legislation, substances which have exclusively a sweet, sour or salty taste are not considered flavorings (Article 2, Regulation (EC) No 1334/2008.Regulation (EC) No 1334/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 2008 on flavourings and certain food ingredients with flavouring properties for use in and on foods and amending Council Regulation (EEC) No 1601/91, Regulations (EC) No 2232/96 and (EC) No 110/2008 and Directive 2000/13/EC (consolidated version of 24 November 2021). The preamble is reproduced here
Also flavor enhancers are not considered flavorings under the EU legislation but additives (Point 14 of Annex I of Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008).Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 2008 on food additives (consolidated version of 8 August 2021). The preamble is reproduced here
EU legislation defines several types of flavorings:European Commission website, Directorate General for Health and Food Safety. Retrieved on 6 May 2020 https://ec.europa.eu/food/safety/food_improvement_agents/flavourings_en flavoring substances (including "natural flavouring substances"): flavoring preparations (by definition always natural): thermal process flavorings smoke flavorings flavor precursors other flavorings
In the EU, Regulation (EC) No 1334/2008 on flavorings and certain food ingredients with flavoring properties for use in/on foods, i.e. the EU Flavouring Regulation, was adopted on 16 December 2008 and entered into force on 20 January 2009. It applies from 20 January 2011. Regulation (EC) No 1334/2008 lays down general requirements for safe use of flavorings and provides definitions for different types of flavorings. The Regulation sets out substances for which an evaluation and approval is required. The Union list of flavoring substances, approved for use in and on foods, was adopted on 1 October 2012 and was introduced in Annex I of this RegulationEuropean Commission website, Directorate General for Health and Food Safety. Retrieved on 6 May 2020: https://ec.europa.eu/food/safety/food_improvement_agents/flavourings/eu_rules_en
In the UK The UK followed the above EU legislation which remained in force until 31 December 2020. The European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 provided that from 1 January 2021, this directly applicable EU legislation was converted into UK law with minor corrections to enable it to operate effectively as UK law. These corrections were made by Statutory Instrument 2019 No. 860.
The UK Food industry, in collaboration with the flavoring industry, has developed guidance on what to consider when declaring a pictorial representation of a food ingredient on the label of a pre-packed product.
In the United States In the United States, flavorings are regulated in Title 21 of the Code of Federal Regulations. They are divided into artificial and natural flavorings.U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Food Labeling In: Code of Federal Regulations, Title 21 — Food and drugs, Chapter I. (version of 6 Jan 2022)
In Australia and New Zealand In Australia and New Zealand regulation of flavorings is covered by the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code of November 2000, entered into force in December 2002.
Natural flavorings are obtained from plant or animal raw materials, by physical, microbiological, or enzymatic processes. They can be either used in their natural state or processed for human consumption, but cannot contain any nature-identical or artificial flavoring substances.