I recently read an article posted on a friends Facebook wall describing all the nasty ingredients that are included in foods without our knowledge. It reminded me of all the foods that I’ve given up over the last year because of the true ingredients or effects of those foods on the body. The things that are adding to our food are truly disturbing (in addition to being disgusting) which is why Tuesday’s will now be ‘Toxicology Tuesdays’. (But we’re kicking off on a Thursday!)
This week…foods with ingredients that you’d never eat alone but are considered “acceptable” by the FDA because it’s a ‘low ratio’. They claim that these ingredients are not hazardous to health and are perfectly acceptable for human consumption. It’s certainly not for those who have a weak stomach, but eye-opening information nonetheless.
Ingredient Name |
What it actually is… |
Found in… |
Confectioners glazeResinous glaze | Bug poo | Shiny candy, chocolate, jelly beans, shiny apples, mascara, lipstick |
Natural Red # 4 Cochineal Carmine ‘natural color’ |
Ground up bugs | Cherry icecreamStrawberry/cherry yogurt |
Ammonium sulfate | Fertilizer | Breads & Subway products |
Castoreum ‘natural flavor’ |
Beaver anal glands | Raspberry candies vanilla flavored icecream |
L-cysteine Cysteine |
Human hair duck feathers |
Bread, dough conditioner |
Allura Red AC | Coal Tar | Red candies, soda |
Cellulose | Wood pulp | Foods with “dietary fiber” bottled milkshakes, flour shredded cheese |
Lanolin, gum base | Sheep secretions | Bubble gum, shampoo/condit/soap |
Silicon Dioxide | Sand | Wendy’s Chili, condensed milk, pudding, mustard, vinegar, American cheese |
Rennet | Calf stomach | Cheeses |
Shellac | Beetle juice | Cupcakes, shiny candies, sprinkles |
Gelatin collagen |
Boiled bones, skin & connective tissues of cows, pigs & horses | Jell-o |
Barbacoa | Cow face | Tacos |
Menudo | ‘tripe’ or skin peeled off the cows stomach | Mexican food |
Worcestershire sauce | Liquefied anchovies melted down in vinegar (bones & all) |
Are you grossed out yet? Take a look at items listed in the FDA Defect Handbook. This is a list of food items that are permitted to have mold or insect parts based on their non-defect ratio. This is PUBLIC INFORMATION. Parts per million or not, I don’t want these things in my food.
Food |
Amount of ‘additive’ allowed per packaging serving |
Apple Butter | Rodent hairs, 5+ whole/equivalent insect parts per 100g (excludes mites, aphids, thrips, scale insects) |
Apricots (Canned) | 2% damaged/infected with insects |
Berries (frozen, black & raspberry) | 4+ larvae per 100 grams |
Asparagus (Canned, frozen) | 10% damaged/infested with insects |
Broccoli (Frozen) | 60+ aphids/thrips/mites per 100 grams |
Brussel sprouts (frozen) | 30+ aphids/thrips/mites per 100 grams |
Ground capsicum | Average 50+ insect parts per 25 grams 6+ rodent hairs per 25 grams |
Group paprika | Average 95+ insect fragments per 25 grams 11+ rodent hairs per 25 grams |
Ground cinnamon | 400+ insect fragments per 50 grams 11+ rodent hairs per 50 grams |
Cocoa Beans | Avg 10+ mg of mammalian excreta per pound 4% damaged by insects |
Canned Sweet corn | 2 or more 3mm insect larvae |
Cornmeal | 1+ whole insects per 50 grams 1+ rodent hair per 25 grams |
Cumin seed | 9.5% allowed to be ash |
Curry powder | Avg 100+ insect fragments per 25 grams |
Dates (sliced, chopped) | 10+ dead insects |
Figs | 10% infested with insects |
Macaroni/noodle products | 225 insect fragments per 225 grams (AKA 1 insect fragment per gram!) |
Nutmeg (Whole) | 10% infested by insects |
Nutmeg (ground) | 100+ insects per 10 grams |
Black olives | 10% infested by fruit flies |
Oregano | 1250 parts per 10 grams |
Peanut Butter | 30+ insect parts per 10 grams |
Peas (black eyed) | 10% infested by insects |
Pepper (ground) | Avg 475+ insect parts per 50grams |
Raisins (gold) | 35 Drosophilia eggs per 8 ounces |
Sage (ground) | 200+ insect fragments per 110 grams |
Sauerkraut | 50+ thrips per 100 grams |
Thyme (ground) | 925 insect fragments per 25 grams |
Tomatoes (canned) | 10+ fly eggs, 2+ maggots per 500 grams |
Tomato puree | 20+ fly eggs per 100 grams |
Maybe you’ll think twice before you head to the grocery store, no? I can’t think of a better argument for local foods and homegrown products–Anything without a bar code. You can find a local market close to you here.