By Jeanne Yacoubou, MS
In April 2024, The VRG received an email from a long-time reader about McDonald’s French fries. She asked: “I’ve seen a lot of reports that say beef flavoring in the fries comes from beef meat, but others seem to say maybe it’s milk flavoring but is called beef flavoring as just the name but milk are the actual ingredients within the parenthesis. I’ve also seen that maybe McDonald’s used beef up until the early 2000s but it’s now milk-based … ”
This was referring to an earlier investigation by The VRG that led to the revelation that McDonald’s French fries contained a beef ingredient. We wrote at the time: “In February 1997, McDonald’s informed us by telephone that the natural flavor in their French fries is a ‘beef product.’ At that time, they declined to send us this information in writing. In July 1997, McDonald’s sent us a fax stating that ‘[t]he natural flavor used in French fries is from an animal source.’”
For an update from McDonald’s, we sent a request for information using their website contact form in May 2024 by asking: Is there any beef-derived ingredient in the natural flavor in your French fries?
We formulated this question based on the ingredient statement for French fries on the company website:
Ingredients: Potatoes, Vegetable Oil (Canola Oil, Corn Oil, Soybean Oil, Hydrogenated Soybean Oil, Natural Beef Flavor [Wheat And Milk Derivatives]*), Dextrose, Sodium Acid Pyrophosphate (maintain Color), Salt. *Natural Beef Flavor Contains Hydrolyzed Wheat And Hydrolyzed Milk As Starting Ingredients.
Contains: Wheat, Milk.
The VRG received a generic reply about the chain’s “sustainability efforts and commitment to the environment” that did not answer our question.
In December 2024, we tried again. We received another generic response, but this time it was about where on the company website you could find ingredient information. However, there was nothing specific about their French fries. We called the customer service line.
McDonald’s Customer Service Phone Line
When we asked if it were possible that there could be other ingredients present in the natural beef flavor derived from beef, such as tallow (beef fat), not listed in that statement, we were put on hold.
The consumer representative then returned to the line reiterating the ingredient statement information. After a few questions, she repeated that only milk and wheat derivatives were used in the natural beef flavor.
IF READERS RECEIVE THE SAME OR A DIFFERENT ANSWER WHEN INQUIRING, PLEASE LET US KNOW.
Natural vs. Artificial Flavors
According to the USFDA, a natural flavor or a natural flavoring could be “the essential oil, oleoresin, essence or extractive, protein hydrolysate, distillate, or any product of roasting, heating or enzymolysis, which contains the flavoring constituents derived from a spice, fruit or fruit juice, vegetable or vegetable juice, edible yeast, herb, bark, bud, root, leaf or similar plant material, meat, seafood, poultry, eggs, dairy products, or fermentation products thereof, whose significant function in food is flavoring rather than nutritional.”
By contrast, USFDA uses similar language to define what an artificial flavor or artificial flavoring is, but using the word not: “…Any substance, the function of which is to impart flavor, which is not derived from a spice, fruit or fruit juice, vegetable or vegetable juice, edible yeast, herb, bark, bud, root, leaf or similar plant material, meat, fish, poultry, eggs, dairy products, or fermentation products thereof. Artificial flavor includes the substances listed in §§ 172.515(b) and 182.60 of this chapter except where these are derived from natural sources.”
Those latter two pages in the Code of Federal Regulations list the hundreds of synthetic flavoring substances and adjuvants – with complex chemical names – that are permissible in foods and which you see on many food labels today.
According to the USFDA, the main difference between natural and artificial flavors is that natural flavors must be derived from plant or animal material but artificial flavors are synthesized in a lab. In both cases, the flavors are chemicals.
An observant reader of the definitions above will notice that the USFDA acknowledges that natural and artificial flavors could have the same identity by stating that chemicals used in artificial flavors could also be found in nature with their phrase “…except where these are derived from natural sources.”
In other words, from a chemical point of view, these two kinds of flavors are indistinguishable in many cases. Whether they react similarly in the human body – referred to as bioavailability – is questioned by some people. There is some research that suggests artificial flavors are associated with negative health outcomes while their natural counterparts are not.
Since the natural flavor definition states animal ingredients could be contained in it, vegans and people with beef or dairy allergies want to know definitively if the natural beef flavor in McDonald’s French fries contains, well, beef.
Other issues surrounding natural vs. artificial flavors abound. For example:
- Natural flavors can contain synthetic chemicals as processing aids or incidental additives which do not have to be labeled. Synthetic solvents used to extract flavor components from plant materials, preservatives, or emulsifiers are common examples.
- Because artificial flavors usually contain fewer chemicals than their analogous natural flavors, and, consequently, are less expensive, companies may prefer to use artificial flavors to keep costs down.
- Natural flavors are required by USFDA to be labeled as artificial if they are added to foods in order to give them a taste different from their customary flavor. For example, a natural cranberry flavor in a croissant would be labeled as artificial since it provides a novel taste to this bread product.
- Most of the thousands of flavor chemicals – both natural and artificial – in foods are added without any USFDA regulation or review.
- Genetically modified ingredients (popularly known as GMOs) could be used in natural flavors. Labeling is not required.
The contents of this posting, our website and our other publications, including Vegan Journal, are not intended to provide personal medical advice. Medical advice should be obtained from a qualified health professional. We often depend on product and ingredient information from company statements. It is impossible to be 100% sure about a statement, info can change, people have different views, and mistakes can be made. Please use your best judgment about whether a product is suitable for you. To be sure, do further research or confirmation on your own.