03-01-06 - colors and flavor challenges

Can we have green? Is it possible to make an organic green colored lollipop? Let's ask our Organic Certification Consultant, Bob if we can use the natural green color "Chlorophyll CFR: 73.1125/732125". His reponse: "It's possible, but I would have to have a lot of additional information about it. What exactly is it's composition (including any inert or filler materials in it), how is it produced, what is the source material. A start would be product information sheets and MSDS." Oh my gosh. Every ingredient is like this. Natural, in this case chlorophyll, doesn't always qualify to be organic. Not by a long shot because you never know what grew in the soil, where it came from, and 100 other things. Regular chemical candy is made in five minutes for five cents (or less). Organic candy must adhere to a fascinatingly draconian militant philosophy of environmentalism and extraordinary food safety. I love a challenge and I'm so impressed by the strict standards set by the USDA. It's really cool to know that if we ever actually put an organic lollipop in a YummyEarth bag, it will actually be made of 100% good stuff that's safe to eat by my boy (who just turned 20 months today!!!). UPDATE: The answer is no. It is not possible to make sour organic lollipops in the fine color of green. What color would Sour Apple be? I have no idea.