Artificial Flavors in Tea
Anyone who has worked in a tea retail store in Canada or the U.S. has no doubt had to battle more then a few customers of the topic of artificial flavorings in tea. And no doubt we all know what I pain in the ass of an argument it always is. So I thought I would bring the topic up for a moment and talk a little about it.
“I don’t eat or drink anything with artificial flavors.”
“Natural flavorings are better for you.”
Sound familiar? Anyone who has worked in a tea shop that sells flavored teas has had heard this from more then a handful of customers. When people see the words artificial flavor on a product they tend to freak out a bit. Mainly because artificial flavorings are chemically created flavorings meant to mimic the flavor of other foods and or beverages. In a time where people are very health conscious, people don’t want to be consuming things that aren’t natural and or organic.
And so when a customer walks into a tea shop and reads these words on the label, they tend to walk away. On one level this is understandable considering how health conscious people are, but in other cases this just a major headache. For example, a customer interested in a bubblegum or cotton candy flavored tea may get upset over the tea having artificial flavors. The issue here is that there are no natural flavorings for these kinds of teas because the food for which they are flavored after, are not natural. And so to expect a candy or gum flavored tea to be naturally flavored is unrealistic. Often times though, these were the same people who would then order a hot tea and ask for Splenda (artificial sweetener) instead of real sugar.
But here’s the kicker. People believe that natural flavors are better for you because they are “natural”. What does that mean exactly? Well for a flavoring to be considered natural the “original source” of the flavor must come from fruits, vegetables, oils, animals, spices, ect. However there is still a large number of chemical additives that can be added into the final product and still be classed as a natural flavor. Also in order to get the flavor from the natural source, it still must go through a chemical process in a laboratory just the same as artificial flavors do. Manufacturers also are not required to list what chemicals, oils or extracts were used to create the flavor.
In addition, just because a grape flavoring for example is natural, that does not mean there is even any grape in the final product. Many times these flavors are made up of multiple flavor sources and additives in order to create the flavor profile the manufacturer wants. Also, nutritionally there is no difference between artificial or natural flavorings. The original source of a natural flavoring is meant only for the purpose of creating flavor, not nutrition. And the same goes for artificial flavorings as well. Therefore neither one holds any better nutritional value then the other.
At the end of the day what is all comes down to is common sense, and understanding. A blueberry tea with artificial or natural flavorings will taste very different from simply adding some blueberries to your tea while it’s steeping. And if it’s a strong blueberry flavor that you want, well then the tea is gonna need a little help from a flavoring. And depending on what flavor your looking for, there may not be a “natural” flavoring for it. In which case it’s artificial or bust. But regardless of where you stand on this, please don’t be that person who rips into the employee then orders a drink with artificial sweetener or flavor shots. We don’t like it and it makes you look like a tool.
