Just look on the ingredient statement. The FDA requires packaged foods to contain an ingredient statement which lists essentially every ingredient in the food. By simply looking on the ingredient statement, you will be able to identify those products that are made with glutamate-rich ingredients.

In addition to the foods listed in our chart, glutamate is also found in some popular and commonly used seasonings and ingredients. Soy sauce, hydrolyzed vegetable protein, autolyzed yeast extract, and of course, monosodium glutamate, are all glutamate-rich ingredients. When used even in very small amounts, these valued ingredients significantly enhance the overall taste of the foods to which they are added, achieving the high-quality flavor that today's sophisticated consumer demands. When trying to determine whether a packaged food contains these glutamate-rich ingredients, all you need to do is look for their names in the ingredient statement.

You may be surprised to know that foods with added MSG do not necessarily contain more glutamate than that found naturally in foods. MSG generally is used at a relatively low percentage in foods, with its common use levels ranging from 0.1 to 0.8 percent. In fact, one study conducted in 1995 by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration found that some foods naturally contained higher levels of glutamate than those which had added MSG declared on the label. Glutamate in Parmesan cheese, for example, was found in levels up to ten times that found in chicken broth with added MSG.

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