# MSG Is Trending Again — the Umami Powder Was Invented in 1908
Canonical URL: https://thefoodthatshapedus.com/trend-desk/msg-myth-vs-umami-history-2026
Answer-first summary: MSG — monosodium glutamate — was developed after Kikunae Ikeda studied kombu’s savory taste in 1908. Datassential now lists MSG among 2026 “new classics.” The powder did not invent umami; it industrialized a taste already present in dashi, cheese, tomatoes, and fermented sauces.
Primary topic: MSG origin
Published: 2026-07-19
Updated: 2026-07-20
Reviewer scope: Source and factual review: Mehdi Iarab — Ikeda chronology, umami terminology, and non-medical myth boundaries for MSG.
## Primary Image
- Name: MSG Is Trending Again — the Umami Powder Was Invented in 1908 primary image
- Image URL: https://thefoodthatshapedus.com/images/foods/history-and-origin-of-soy-sauce.webp
- Dimensions: 1200x900
- Encoding: image/webp
- Alt text: Crystalline MSG beside kombu and a bowl of clear Japanese dashi
- Visual description: MSG concentrates glutamate — the same savory compound behind kombu dashi.
- Caption: MSG concentrates glutamate — the same savory compound behind kombu dashi.
- Visible entities: Monosodium glutamate, Umami
- Credit: The Foods That Shaped Us Research Desk
- Image terms: https://thefoodthatshapedus.com/image-rights#terms
- Permission information: https://thefoodthatshapedus.com/image-rights#request-permission
## What's happening
Chefs and product developers are naming MSG again as a clean umami lever, and trend reports list it among flavors to know in 2026 [1]. That visibility collides with older English-language scare stories about restaurant MSG. A food-history desk should answer the origin query first: 1908, Ikeda, kombu — then explain the myth layer.
## The history behind it
Ikeda identified glutamate as the source of kombu broth’s savoriness and helped commercialize MSG as a seasoning [2][3]. Glutamate already existed in traditional foods; the factory made it portable. Later twentieth-century media often framed MSG through culturally loaded restaurant myths rather than through that chemistry-and-industry record. For the full evergreen, see the MSG article.
## Why it matters
MSG is a rare trend topic where correcting the timeline is the entire editorial job. Readers searching “MSG origin” deserve Ikeda’s date, not a wellness sermon or a recycled panic headline.
## The bottom line
MSG is a 1908 Japanese seasoning invention tied to kombu research. Umami is older than the brand jar. Use the evergreen page for sources, definitions, and the myth boundary — this note is the timely bridge.
## Sources & References
1. “Datassential 2026 Trends Preview.” Datassential (2026)
2. “Umami.” Encyclopaedia Britannica (2024) https://www.britannica.com/science/umami
3. Harold McGee “On Food and Cooking.” Scribner (2004)
Related canonical pages: [MSG](https://thefoodthatshapedus.com/food/msg) | [Dashi](https://thefoodthatshapedus.com/food/dashi) | [Soy Sauce](https://thefoodthatshapedus.com/food/soy-sauce)