Foods AliveNon-Fortified Premium Nutritional Yeast Flakes | 2 lbs | Unfortified Vegan Cheese Powder Seasoning

In short, I designed an experiment comparing the taste of 4 different non-fortified nutritional yeast brands (standardized by weight, and emulsified in neutral oil & water to taste) and found that FoodsAlive was the most flavorful of the bunch! Although SariFoods was a close runner-up.1. Foods Alive (The Winner!)2. SariFoods (a close 2nd)3. Dr. Berg (pretty good, although a bit less flavorful than the other 2)4. NatureBell (terrible, tastes like paper)Background:I've used nutritional yeast in my recipes for years (there's a salad dressing you can make with it that’s surprisingly good). However, I have to make an extra effort to avoid nutritional yeast that’s fortified with synthetic B-vitamins. Using too much of the fortified kind reliably gives me unpleasant side effects like overstimulation, anxiety, sleeplessness, etc.So, SariFoods was my go-to brand for years. Their nutritional yeast tastes amazing and is emphatically non-fortified. Just straight nutritional yeast. Nothing else added. However, I was perusing Amazon one day and saw that Naturebell had a non-fortified nutritional yeast that was a lot cheaper per ounce. So I decided to give it a try.Huge mistake.I was shocked to find out that the taste between SariFoods' & Naturebell’s nutritional yeast was radically different. Like night and day. One of them (Naturebell’s) tasted like stale cardboard, while the other (SariFoods) had an insanely cheesy/nutty/umami flavor that was a potent flavor enhancer to every dish or sauce it was added to.Which led me to do this taste-test experiment comparing two more (4 total) non-fortified brands of nutritional yeast that you can find on Amazon.The Experiment:Each nutritional yeast was weighed out to approximately 3.5 grams*. Then I added 1/2th Tbsp of neutral oil & 1 Tbsp of warm water to each, and shook them vigorously to create an emulsion.(*I initially tried the experiment with equal volumes instead of equal weights until I realized that some of them are much denser than others. For example, on one extreme, FoodsAlive weighs ≈ 3.7 grams per 1/2th Tbsp, whereas Dr. Berg was only 2.2 grams per 1/2th Tbsp).Initial observations:Dr. Berg, FoodsAlive, and SariFoods had a more "natural"-looking, dark-beige color. Whereas NatureBell’s nutritional yeast was much brighter & yellow in color. Once emulsified, FoodsAlive revealed an even richer/darker color than the other two. Dr. Berg’s was the flakiest (which explains why it weighed the least by volume) followed by NatureBell being the 2nd most flakey. FoodsAlive & SariFoods were more powdery & dense although they still had a general flakey-ness to them.Taste:In my opinion, FoodsAlive is the clear winner here. It was the most intensely flavorful and captured the essence of what I think nutritional yeast should taste like (cheesy, yeasty, slightly nutty, and undeniably umami).SariFoods was a very close second. Both FoodsAlive and SariFoods tasted the “cheesiest” in my opinion.Dr. Berg came in third. Nothing wrong with it. It was still pretty flavorful and tasty, just not as potent as the other two.NatureBell is the clear loser here, unfortunately. It tasted terrible like stale cardboard. I think something went wrong with their yeast growing operation. Or possibly they cut it with some cheap adulterant to save on costs. I don't know. But regardless of the reason, the flavor was simultaneously awful and bland. It had none of the complex cheesy/nutty/umami flavor that is recognizable as nutritional yeast to me. Also, I think it’s interesting to note the odd, vivid yellow color compared to the other three. Riboflavin (Vitamin B2) has an intense orange-ish/yellow color. Often times, nutritional yeast that IS fortified with B-vitamins, is more bright & yellow because of the addition of synthetic riboflavin. I cannot say for certain whether or not NatureBell actually did fortify their nutritional yeast with synthetic riboflavin (it’s possible that the color is just naturally occurring), but I think it's something to note.Disclaimer: I do not work for, nor am I associated in any way with SariFoods, FoodsAlive, Dr. Berg, or NatureBell. This was an independent test that I performed in my spare time and the results are based on my own taste which is highly subjective. I highly recommend you repeat this test on your own to compare results. Also, this test is not comprehensive. There are several other brands of non-fortified nutritional yeast on Amazon that I did not test but would like to in the future (Anthony's, LOOV, and MicroIngredients to name a few other brands).

Nutritional yeast is a game-changer! It has a savory, cheesy, slightly nutty flavor that makes everything taste better. I love sprinkling it on popcorn for a delicious, dairy-free cheesy kick and on tofu to add extra depth and umami. It’s also packed with B vitamins and protein, making it a great nutritional boost. The texture is light and flaky, and it blends well into sauces, soups, and even pasta. If you’re looking for a flavorful, plant-based seasoning, this is a must-have in the kitchen!

I love the quality and taste of the nutritional yeast. It adds a rich flavor to everything. I use it all the time and cannot get enough. The price was also better compared to the other ones.

Don’t count on the nutritional value. Buy only if you enjoy the taste.1. Unfortified nutritional yeast doesn’t provide any B12. Excerpted from Wiki: “ Since nutritional yeast is often used by vegans who may be interested in supplementing their diets with vitamin B12, there has been confusion about the source of the B12 in nutritional yeast. Yeast cannot produce B12, which is naturally produced only by some bacteria.[8] Some brands of nutritional yeast, though not all, are fortified with vitamin B12. When it is fortified, the vitamin B12 (commonly cyanocobalamin) is produced separately and then added to the yeast.[9][10]”2. Beware of Glutamic Acid. Excerpted from an online article: “This is why nutritional yeast is considered impure — it most likely contains processed free glutamic acid (source). When ingested, the highly concentrated glutamates enter the bloodstream then the brain without going through the proper channels of digestion (source). 25% of the population reacts adversely to free glutamic acid, usually within 48 hours of ingestion.”This doesn’t mean nutritional yeast is evil. It still provides good amount of B1 and B2. It’s just not the “perfect natural source of B12” many vegans thought it is. If you just like it for food flavoring then go for it.