What is Food?

Here is the actual list of ingredients on a "snack" offered to me on an airline. It was a “potato skins snack chips” from Poore Brothers, Inc., of Goodyear, AZ. It contains:

Corn oil, partially hydrogenated cottonseed oil with TBHQ, dehydrated potatoes, potato starch, corn, sugar, salt, cheese powder, whey, partially hydrogenated soybean oil, maltodextrin, disodium phosphate, nonfat milk, citric acid, artificial flavor, lactic acid, potassium chloride, monosodium glutamate, buttermilk solids, mono and diglycerides, dextrose, butter solids, caramel color, beta carotene, FD&C yellow #5, red #40, blue#1, extractives of turmeric and annatto, hydrolyzed soy protein, dehydrated onion, yeast extract, molasses powder, dried sour cream, disodium inosinate, disodium guanylate, malic acid.

By category:

Vegetables & Legumes:

Corn

dehydrated potatoes

potato starch

hydrolyzed soy protein

dehydrated onion

Dairy:

cheese powder

whey

nonfat milk

butter solids

dried sour cream

lactic acid

Oil:

Corn oil

hydrogenated cottonseed oil with TBHQ

partially hydrogenated soybean oil

Sugar:

sugar

dextrose

maltodextrin

molasses powder

Salt:

salt

potassium chloride

Color:

disodium phosphate

caramel color

beta carotene

FD&C yellow #5, red #40, blue#1

extractives of turmeric and annatto

Flavor:

citric acid

artificial flavor

monosodium glutamate

yeast extract

Texture or preservative:

mono and diglycerides

disodium inosinate

disodium guanylate

malic acid

This snack is a marvel of modern food engineering, no doubt. It has things in it that are derived from familiar foodstuffs. And much else besides. You have to wonder, does the end result really qualify as food at all?

Needless to say, I did not eat my "snack." I did not consider it to be food.