But when I heard of these outrageous claims suggesting that their foods, especially their beloved fries, were artificially flavored, I was shocked and appalled. So naturally, in order to calm my nerves, I decided to read and reflect philosophically on an excerpt from Eric Schlosser’s book, Fast Food Nation.
Here, Mr. Schlosser, using the central issue of how McDonalds now flavors its fries using some type of artificial flavoring in favor of the beef tallow cottonseed oil that it traditionally used, introduces us to the idea that we are constantly being deceived by the very foods that we eat – that in today’s world of super-efficiency and mass commercialization, foods barely hold onto any of their original forms or tastes and are instead enlivened via the heavy use of natural and artificial flavors. Walking around these flavoring companies’ enormous production and research facilities truly gives you a scope of just how great this seemingly-niche industry has become.
Mr. Schlosser makes several points about this topic of food flavoring. First, he makes it clear just how serious the food industry takes this (as they very well should; if they didn’t, their foods would probably be dull and tasteless, or worse… natural and healthy). Many food companies are known to train and hire hordes of food scientists meant to determine whether or not a particular chemical found in a common women’s perfume could be slightly changed and rebottled to give packaged noodles deep aromas of seafood and the ocean.
Mr. Schlosser also touches upon the fallacy of distinguishing “natural” flavors from “artificial” flavors, citing how many natural flavors share the same chemical compositions as artificial flavors (the only difference being that natural flavors embraced less-technological and more conservative methods of extraction).
Finally, Mr. Schlosser makes the very interesting point that taste was very much an evolutionary tool meant to help us choose safe things to eat, and that like our other senses, it can definitely be influenced by psychological factors and expectations. And while we can of course examine taste from a biological or chemical point of view (such as investigating how various foods interact with taste buds, or how great a factor smell is in determining taste), we should also look at it from a cognitive and perceptive point of view. Now, one of Mr. Schlosser’s most interesting stories on this topic was as follows:
“Grainger had brought a dozen small glass bottles from the lab. After he opened each bottle, I dipped a fragrance-testing filter into it -- a long white strip of paper designed to absorb aroma chemicals without producing off notes. Before placing each strip of paper in front of my nose, I closed my eyes. Then I inhaled deeply, and one food after another was conjured from the glass bottles. I smelled fresh cherries, black olives, sautéed onions, and shrimp. Grainger's most remarkable creation took me by surprise. After closing my eyes, I suddenly smelled a grilled hamburger. The aroma was uncanny, almost miraculous -- as if someone in the room were flipping burgers on a hot grill. But when I opened my eyes, I saw just a narrow strip of white paper and a flavorist with a grin.”
Had the flavorist chosen to act in a more clandestine manner, it would have been almost impossible for Schlosser to know whether or not he had experienced the “legitimate” scents of fresh cherries and a grilled hamburger. When relying on a limited number of senses (in this case, taste and smell), this becomes increasingly difficult. We have the knowledge problem of knowing whether or not something we sensed was merely an illusion or the genuine thing (and in this case, “illusion” could very much refer to all flavors added to foods that would traditionally not be there). Looking more broadly, there is then the very fundamental knowledge issue of corroborating the reliability of our very own sensory perceptions.
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