What is monosodium glutamate?

Monosodium glutamate is the monosodium salt of L-glutamic acid which occurs naturally as one of the amino acid building blocks of food proteins.

It is used in a wide range of foods, including canned meat and fish, spreads, soups and other processed foods.

All food manufacturers are bound by law to state clearly on the label all ingredients, including additives used in prepared food.

Monosodium glutamate is sold as a fine white crystal substance, similar in appearance to salt or sugar. It is freely soluble in water and is sparingly soluble in alcohol. It does not have a distinct taste of its own.

Many scientists believed that monosodium glutamate stimulates glutamate receptors in tongue to augment meat-like flavors. It is extensively used as a natural seasoning, which enriches and augments the flavor of a wide spectrum of food products.

As amino acid, it will participate in the Maillard reaction and be consumed in part during thermal processing.
Production of monosodium glutamate started when in 1956, a Japanese biochemist (Professor Yoshio Okada) discover that the metabolic process of certain strains of bacteria produced glutamic acid.

Within a few years, the Japanese food and drug manufacturer Kyowa Hakko was selling commercial quantities of monosodium glutamate.
What is monosodium glutamate?