Some Insects Are in Our Food for a Reason

As a PMP, you don’t mind working with insects, but would you want to eat them? Turns out some insects are supposed to be in our food.

Derived from the scale insect cochineal (Dactylopius coccus), cochineal is a red color additive found in many food and makeup items. Along with lipsticks and blushes, many juices and yogurts even contain cochineal.

The small scale insects live on prickly pear, with their bodies covered in a white, fluffy wax. The red pigment it produces (carminic acid) evolved in order for the scale insect to fend off predators, such as ants.

Dr. Gwen Pearson, outreach coordinator for the Purdue Department of Entomology, defends the use of cochineal in food and makeup products in a Wired article.

Because of its stability during cooking, freezing or in an acid environment, cochineal is ideal for manufacturing. Maybe you’ve seen it on labels before and didn’t even realize what it was. Cochineal also is known as carmine, carminic acid, Natural Red 4, or E120.

Cochineal is actually in many of the products you consume. And as Dr. Pearson pointed out, beeswax, a compound secreted by glands in the butt-end of a honeybee, is used in various lip balms and unguents without a fuss. Yet, the idea of cochineal in food is a source of discomfort for many.

Before you lose your appetite, just remember these facts about cochineal:

– Cochineal is a chemical extract from squished female cochineal scales. Squished, not ground up. No actual insect legs, wings, etc. are left in the dye.

– Cochineal is non-toxic, lab tests show.

– The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) not only knows about, but also approves of, bug parts in food. It’s a fact of life.