What is that?
As is most often the case with food labels, definitions are defined by the FDA, not common usage (nor common sense for that matter).
Definition of flavor: something 'whose significant function in food is flavoring rather than nutritional.'
Ok... This means, chicken added to a food (being high in nutritional content), would not classify as a flavor, but chicken extract, on the other hand, would be able to (since it's added in very small amounts for the flavor, and provides minimal nutritional benefit.)
Definition of NATURAL: flavors 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 fermentaton products therof (21CFR101.22)
That's a mouthful. Let me simplify it: flavors originally deriving from something living. How's that?
Definition of ARTIFICIAL: everything NOT fitting under the above definition of natural
So natural is healthier right?
This is the tricky part. The answer is actually no when it comes to using "natural" and "artificial" in terms of flavoring (not true elsewhere).
How would you like eating "ethyl methyl phenyl glycidate?" Sounds unnatural right? But this is the chemical name for the primary flavor of strawberries, so you eat a strawberry, you're eating that. Humans have learned to create this molecule synthetically, so you can be getting the same flavor, and indeed, the exact chemical structure, except that it never came from a strawberry. I heard it best put that the difference between natural and artificial flavorings is not identity, but original source. Also remember that the NATURAL flavors are also extracted in a lab or processing plant, not just the ARTIFICIAL ones. It's not like they squeezed some fresh strawberries into your Koolaid powder or your cereal.
One final point is that some also argue that artificial flavors may actually be safer since regulations are stricter regarding safety-testing. Hmm.
After all I have said, there's still something in me that cries "I don't care if natural and artificial are identical molecules. I rather have natural!" The truth of the matter is, if we want real healthy, we should eat real food with neither natural or flavors added to begin with.
RESOURCES:
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/what-is-the-difference-be-2002-07-29/
http://www.flavorfacts.org/natural-vs-artificial-what-is-the-difference/
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