FLAVOURING

also spelled Flavoring, any of the liquid extracts, essences, and flavours that are added to foods to enhance their taste and aroma. Flavourings are prepared from essential oils, such as almond and lemon; from vanilla; from fresh fruits by expression; from ginger by extraction; from mixtures of essential oils and synthetic organic chemicals; or entirely from synthetic chemicals, with alcohol, glycerol, propylene glycol, alone or in combination, as solvents. Water is added and sometimes certified food colour as well. Extracts, essences, and flavours employing only natural flavouring agents are called pure; those employing synthetics (in part or entirely) are called imitation, or artificial, flavourings. Essential oils, which are complex substances derived from plants, consist of a number of organic chemical components such as alcohols, aldehydes, ethers, esters, hydrocarbons (terpenes, sesquiterpenes, etc.), ketones, lactones, phenols, and phenol ethers. Nearly all of these organic chemicals have been synthesized, and it is these synthetics that are used in the manufacture of imitation flavourings.