I love this licorice. When I shop for licorice my first thing to check is the ingredients. With black licorice it is a MUST to have natural licorice flavor through use of extract or other methods obtained through the roots of the plant. Real plant derived extract flavoring is not only good, it is good for you. Black licorice is a rarity in the candy industry... it has medicinal value. What other candy contains ingredients that reduces fat, aids digestive system, heal ulcers, fight infection and even make menopause symptoms less severe. That is why ingredients are first thing to look at. JUST SAY NO to ingredients saying " licorice flavored " , that simply means it has no health benefits and is made in a factory. The use of Licorice EXTRACT is a bragging right for manufacturers. If you click on a black licorice product and it doesn't specifically mention use of licorice extract in the ingredients look elsewhere. Also, if ingredients aren't listed at all...run away.The second thing I look at is price. Some show price per ounce ( my favorite ) while others show only the price per package, which sucks .When they do that I have to take the time convert total package weight to ounces and divide ounces into package price and get the price per ounce. WTF people..do us all a favor. Just list the ingredients and price per ounce for all to see..One concern I have now is that I placed a order for this product in September and paid $22 and less than 2 months later the price has gone up $10. That will definitely make me shop longer