Indigo jones

Just when you think you’ve heard it all, something like this surfaces to make you rethink your food choices again. While there are tons of chemical additives that we can actively avoid, there also seem to be many “natural” additives that are down right disgusting!
Here are some of the highlights, as exposed by “Eat This, Not That.”

Beaver Anal Gland Juice, listed on labels as simply “natural flavorings” is often called castoreum. It is a bitter, reddish brown substance that is combined with the beaver’s urine to mark its territory. It’s also used extensively in soft drinks and foods, typically as vanilla or raspberry flavors.

Who would have guessed that drinking raspberry soda could be something akin to a stunt on “Fear Factor?”

Human Hair and feathers are used to create a non- essential amino acid called L-cysteine, which improves the texture of commercially made baked goods. I seem to be able to get a nice consistency to my homemade breads, without adding hair, but apparently, it not everyone can.

Farmed Shrimp from foreign countries are often soaked in chemicals to clean the filthy pens they are raised in. The shrimp is often packed with traces of rat hair, and insects found in the pens, and laced with antibiotics to kill the diseases associated with these conditions.  Since only 2% of this seafood is inspected when it reaches this country, much of this could make it’s way to your plate.  Currently re-thinking dinner…

Ever wonder how your red candies and juices get that way? Carmine, Cochineal, Crimson Lake and red dye #4 is made from crushed Dactylopius cocchus, or African Beetle abdomens. Nice!

Grossed out yet? Yep, we are too!  It is almost impossible to know what is getting into our foods these days, Organic foods are more highly regulated, so buying them can prevent some of this from sneaking in.  Avoiding processed foods and things in packages is also helpful in avoiding additives. Otherwise, some things may be better off unsaid.  Sorry.

photo:Glasshouse Images