The Clean Label Revolution is Here

The idea of natural, simple ingredients is gaining traction with a growing number of consumers. Virtual armies of them, in fact. The Food Babe Army recently took up arms against Subway in an effort to force them to remove Azodicarbonamide—a chemical used in yoga mats—from their bread. And they won. This is not an isolated incident. With a growing awareness of and interest in what’s in their food, consumers will continue to wage battle against manufacturers and producers who aren’t aligning with the clean label philosophy.

But what does “clean label” mean? Without a standard definition, clean label means different things to different people. All natural. Free from additives and preservatives. No artificial colors or flavors. Non-GMO. All of these concepts fall under the clean label umbrella.

The natural foods retailer, Whole Foods Market, has a list of unacceptable ingredients—reverently referred to as the Whole Foods Bible—which is typically considered the clean label standard for natural food manufacturing. The list bans products that contain ingredients such as MSG, high-fructose corn syrup, and artificial flavors, colors, sweeteners or preservatives. A testament to the growing demand for natural, simple products, consumers are flocking in droves to purchase Whole Foods’ products, to the tune of $14 billion in sales last year.

So what does this growing trend mean for food manufacturers and formulators? With consumers harkening fondly back to simpler times, food manufacturers need to carefully consider the composition and provenance of their ingredients. Today’s health-conscious consumers want to know what they’re putting into their bodies—and they want to believe it’s wholesome, natural, and definitely not sounding like it came from a science lab. Todd Runestad, Editor-in-Chief of Functional Ingredients, agrees: “Among U.S. consumers, the appeal has suddenly burst in the open for ingredient decks that are cleansed of artificial, chemical-sounding ingredients and a yearning for products like grandma used to make.”

Here at Mazza, we support consumers’ demands for clean label ingredients and are proud of our clean, botanical extracts. Unlike the common solvent-based methods of extraction that use methanol, ethanol or other undesired solvents, we use a water-based extraction process. This unique technology uses moderate temperatures and pressure to de-polarize water molecules and trick water into behaving like a solvent. Our solvent-free extraction process produces natural, clean extracts that are free from toxic residues—a first in the industry with our new and effective method.

To us, clean label means solvent-free. Natural ingredients. Free from chemical residues. Pure. What does it mean to you?