Summary

The question of what makes food natural or unnatural has spawned controversy for generations. Many people desire “natural food,” but all people struggle to define it. Its definition has been the subject of marketing lawsuits and government hearings. Within Europe and the United States, especially, people have turned to the phrase “natural food” to signal religious commitments, respond to food safety regulations, market their product, and advance political objectives. The definition of natural food at any given moment illuminates much about the values, trends, and political and economic dynamics of that period.