JohnBKK wrote:A few exerps:
it's made naturally from boiling dried kombu seaweed; it can also come from dried shrimp or bonito flakes, or from fermented soy. More cheaply and easily, you get it from a tin, where it is stabilised with ordinary salt and is thus monosodium glutamate.
Marmite, with 1750mg per 100g, has more glutamate in it than any other manufactured product on the planet
Glutamat is made in an industrial fermentation process and than stabelized in salt - MSG = I wouldnot call that manufacturing
We'll have to disagree on that one then, I'd definately call an industrial fermentation process followed by a chemical reaction (it's not just mixed up with salt) manufacturing for sure.
Plus you don't know where the chemical stock for the fermentation comes from. I very much doubt that its dried Kombu seaweed, more likley fish guts and chicken waste.
The Ajinomoto (spelling?) MSG factory looks like an oil refinery for a good reason
I've absolutely nothing against MSG (although you need a very light touch), but don't be fooled into thinking that a nature identical product is made by a natural process. Eg. another amino acid used for flavourings is cysteine, nice and natural you'd think, but it's chemically cracked from feathers in a very harse chemical process. Some of the background in these 'natural flavours' can be a bit grim.
Wheter people care or not is entirely up to them (I don't actually, just for the record), but it's nice to know the facts.