BuzzFeed News Quotes Camire in Article on Artificial Ingredients
Mary Ellen Camire, a University of Maine professor of food science and human nutrition and Institute of Food Technologists president, was interviewed for the BuzzFeed News article, “What is an artificial ingredient, anyway?” Some of America’s biggest fast-food chains have recently announced their menus are going natural, and giant food manufacturers including General Mills and Kraft have announced they are removing artificial ingredients, according to the article. However, removing artificial ingredients isn’t likely to have any effect on health because natural and artificial flavors really aren’t that different, the article states. Camire said the fixation on paring down ingredients is “elitist.” “Certainly for people who are starving, [preservatives] would be nice to have,” she said, adding that many people assume — without scientific evidence — that food is bad if it’s a chemical or produced by a big company. DailyNews724 also carried the BuzzFeed report.