Definition: In the dictionary, “existing in or caused by nature.”
What it means for you: Absolutely nothing, yet. Food manufacturers can label anything from guacamole to Sun Chips “natural” without consequence, though some people are trying to change that. California’s Proposition 37, which failed to pass last year, would have prohibited genetically modified food from being labeled “natural.” The law’s downfall was its lack of specificity: almost all foods are modified by humans on some basic level, and opponents argued that enforcing such labeling restrictions state by state could get tricky.
That hasn’t stopped people from trying to hold food companies accountable. Shortly after Prop 37 was voted down, a Colorado woman sued Campbell’s, which manufactures “Goldfish” crackers, for marketing the fish-shaped orange snacks as “natural” when they contained genetically modified organisms, such as soy derivatives.
