Source: https://verify-veg.com/blog/natural-flavors-vegan/
Language: en

# Are "Natural Flavors" Vegan? They Can Hide Animal Products

"Natural flavors" is one of the most reassuring-sounding phrases on a label, and one of the least
specific. It suggests fruit and herbs. In reality, the legal definition of a natural flavor
explicitly includes animal sources, so a product that says "natural flavors" can contain an
animal-derived ingredient without telling you which one.

> **Key Takeaways**
> - "Natural flavors" does not mean plant-based. The FDA definition includes meat, seafood, eggs and dairy as possible sources.
> - The label almost never says which source a natural flavor came from.
> - "Natural" vs "artificial" is about the source, not about health or safety.
> - To be sure, look for a vegan certification, contact the brand, or scan the product.

**TL;DR: "Natural flavors" is not automatically vegan.** The FDA allows natural flavors to come
from animal sources, including meat, seafood, eggs and dairy, and labels rarely say which one was
used.

## What "natural flavor" legally means

The definition is buried in US regulation, and it is worth reading closely. Under 21 CFR 101.22, a
natural flavor is a substance whose purpose is flavor, and whose source is a spice, fruit,
vegetable, herb, bark, root, leaf, yeast, or "meat, seafood, poultry, eggs, dairy products, or
fermentation products thereof"
([Cornell Law, 21 CFR 101.22](https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/21/101.22), retrieved
2026-08-25). That last clause is the part most shoppers never see.

So a "natural flavor" can legally be derived from beef, chicken, fish or milk. The word "natural"
refers to the fact that the flavor comes from a natural source, not that the source is a plant.

## Why this is a problem for vegans and vegetarians

A vegan reading "natural flavors" on a bag of chips has no way to know whether the flavor came
from a vegetable or from animal tissue. Treehugger frames the issue the same way: the term is
ambiguous for anyone avoiding animal products, because the source is not disclosed
([Treehugger](https://www.treehugger.com/natural-flavors-vegan-5270561), retrieved 2026-08-25).

This is different from an ingredient like "whey," which is clearly dairy. "Natural flavors" is a
black box. A meat-flavored snack can list "natural flavors" and a vegetable-flavored one can too,
and the two labels look identical.

## "Natural" is not a health claim

It is worth separating two ideas. "Natural flavor" and "artificial flavor" are a regulatory
distinction about where the flavor molecule came from. The FDA treats them as functionally similar
once the flavor is made. "Natural" is not a synonym for "safe," "clean" or "plant-based." It just
means the starting material was natural.

## How to check

1. Look for a **vegan certification logo**, which rules out animal-derived flavors.
2. **Contact the brand** and ask the source of their natural flavors.
3. Choose products that name the flavor source (for example, "vanilla extract" instead of
   "natural flavor").
4. **Scan the product.** A scanner app flags ambiguous and animal-derived ingredients against your
   diet automatically.

Natural flavors are one of several ingredients where the label hides more than it reveals. See our
[E-numbers cheat sheet](/blog/e-numbers-vegan-list/) for the others.

## The bottom line

"Natural flavors" is not a guarantee of anything except that the flavor came from a natural source,
which can include animals. If you need certainty, certification, a brand answer or a scanner is the
way to get it.

**Check before you eat.** The Verify Veg app scans a barcode or reads an ingredient list from a
photo and flags ingredients against your diet (vegan, vegetarian, halal, kosher, Jain and more).
[Download on the App Store](https://apps.apple.com/us/app/verifyveg-vegan-scanner/id6758276834) -
Android is coming soon.

*Written by Samir Narain, founder of Verify Veg. Verify Veg helps people check packaged food
against their diet by scanning barcodes and reading ingredient lists from photos.*

*Note: Verify Veg provides ingredient-based compatibility checks, not certification. Ingredient
sources can vary by manufacturer, so always confirm with the brand or vendor.*