'Natural' Food Label Meaningless: Shoppers Unaware of What it Means

Most of the goods that we see at the grocery stores have food labels on them. There is organic, non-fat, low-fat, natural, no artificial, preservatives or flavor, and so on.

All of these labels have significant meaning that consumers think they can take advantage of. Despite all claims by some food experts, according to several studies in the past, food labels would not help you with your diet.

Most people don't mind paying extra for merchandises with food labels that say "natural." However, most of the consumers don't really know what the label means.

According to a new survey by Consumer Reports, the number of people who buy food with "natural" label on it is increasing. About 62 percent of Americans in 2015 are willing to pay extra for food that is labeled "natural" compared to 59 percent in the 2014 report. However, most of these people are not sure what it exactly means.

What came as a surprise is that the term is never been legally regulated, at least not as of yet.

There has already been a petition by the consumer group to ban the use of the term, unless health officials can provide a clear meaning, so that it would not mislead the shoppers.

"The use of the word 'natural' is a deceptive marketing ploy to reel in unaware consumers. People are led to believe it is the same as 'organic,' which it surely is not," a shopper from Florida said.

USA Today reported that more Americans are buying food with labels rather than its taste and convenience. Shoppers are looking for labels on the packaging without even knowing if the term is regulated or not.

Consumers think that the label on the front of the package can do some positive impact to their health. The have this notion that, if they eat those food that says "natural," their body will function differently.

"The problem with having all these misleading labels is it creates a lot of green noise in the marketplace," says the director Urvashi Rangan of Food Safety for Consumer Reports. "If we think about wanting better food-production systems, then we need to provide meaningful choice to people."

Consumer reports revealed that some products that claimed to be natural contain artificial chemicals. Processed cheese like the Kraft shredded cheddar actually has cellulose power, while the Del Monte fruit cups, which have the natural label, contain artificial preservatives.

Natural labels have been used by so many products. Most of them claim to be natural, but the truth is they are processed food.