Review of the Passage
This passage demonstrates how fast foods became a social custom of millions of people and the consequences presented by these brands to unsuspecting consumers. Schlosser diligently argues that although the fast food industry has been a catalyst of larger economic trends, it has played a central role in the spread of obesity and other lifestyle diseases (Schlosser, para. 4). The author discusses in detail how flavors used in fast foods are manufactured in factory settings using a concoction of potentially lethal and volatile chemicals. Indeed, much of the passage dwells on what the author saw as he visited several factories that manufacture the flavors used in the fast food industry.
Generally, the author has succeeded in demonstrating that our own ignorance regarding the ingredients of flavors, colorings, and additives that grace our food and drinks is our major undoing in terms of the consequences occasioned by fast foods
Overall Impression
The passage is rich in information about the dangers people expose themselves to as they engage in consuming large amounts of fast foods on routine basis. Specifically, the passage fills the information gap that existed on the terms “natural flavors” and “artificial flavors,” that we read on the packages of fast foods that we consume on almost daily basis. In this regard, the passage is informative.
It is, however, shocking to realize that one flavor may be produced by combining hundreds of potentially lethal and volatile chemicals in a laboratory – ingredients that are kept in top secret so that end consumers may not realize what they are actually consuming has been manufactured to fit taste preferences. It is even rather shocking that FDA allows such practices to continue under the mundane guise that these flavors are manufactured using natural ingredients while the opposite is true.
French Fries & Implications
The author is categorical that the distinctive taste of McDonalds French flies does not stem from the type of potatoes used, technology, or the equipment used; on the contrary, the taste is largely determined by the type of oil and the flavors used to make the fries have a unique beefy taste (Schlosser para. 7-8). The implications are that not only do people consume products that they rarely have a clue on where they come from or what has been used to prepare them, but the unique taste occasioned by the flavors continues to trap more people into consuming the fries, thus putting their lives at risk of getting lifestyle diseases such as obesity.
The Flavor Industry
The passage demonstrates that the flavor industry has turned into a multi-billion dollar industry since most popular brands in the market use them to ignite tastes that only serve to enslave people to the products (Schlosser para. 19). However, what people don’t realize is that these flavors are manufactured in industries and laboratories using a concoction of chemicals as Schlosser learnt when he visited the International Flavors and Fragrances (IFF) plant – undoubtedly the largest flavor company in the world. The IFF is the master manufacturer of numerous flavors that many fast food brands use to ignite that “special” taste so as to make people consume more of the products.
The trailers, steam, white lab coats and a ballage of powerful chemicals witnessed by the author at the IFF plant in New Jersey implies that the flavors are manufactured in a factory setting. This has a direct implication on the typical American diet since people end up consuming products or drinks that have been laced by chemicals passing by the name of natural flavors. In straightforward terms, IFF is a conduit of cheating Americans that what they consume is fresh and tastes nice while it is known that the ‘taste’ or ‘freshness’ of the products is manufactured using chemicals (Jakle & Sculle 28).
Role of a Flavorist
According to Schlosser, “…a flavorist is a chemist with a trained nose and a poetic sensibility” (para. 35), charged with the responsibility of manufacturing different types of flavors by blending numerous types of chemicals in minute amounts to come up with a distinctive taste that is then used to confuse the populace on the original taste of a certain product. Therefore, the basic role of natural or artificial flavors is that of confusing taste preferences to make people consume more of the fast foods with the mistaken believe that these foods have been prepared uniquely to achieve the desired taste.
The flavors industry is haphazardly regulated, with the only regulation from FDA being that the ingredients used must come from natural products. While such a regulation is hard to follow, it has been proved that some natural ingredients used in the manufacturing of flavors pose more health risks than artificial ingredients (Jackle & Sculle 23).
Works Cited
Jackle, J.A., & Sculle, K.A. Fast Food: Roadside Restaurants in the Automobile Age. Baltimore, Maryland: The John Hopkins University Press. 1999.
Schlosser, E. The Bitter Truth about Fast Food. The Guardian. (2001).