Yes. There really is a red food color made from insects. This food additive is the infamous Cochineal extract, as well as carmine. These are derived from the dried female insect, Dactylopius coccus costa, commonly known as the cochineal. These beetles live on certain cacti, mostly in Peru but also in Chile, Bolivia, and the Canary Islands. They are manually harvested twice a year, sun-dried, and crushed. The color is extracted with an aqueous alcohol solution to derive a cochineal extract which can be made into different products both powder and liquid. Or, it can be further processed to produce carmine.
The active pigment in cochineal extract and carmine is carminic acid. This coloring imparts a red, orange, or pink color to foods and is used in meat, candies, beverages, ice cream, dairy products, and cosmetics.
Some people are sensitive to cochineal extract, carmine, or carminic acid. Although for most natural colorings, labels don’t need to name the specific color, a new rule was made for cochineal extract and carmine on January 5, 2009, requiring the declaration by name of both colors on all food and cosmetic labels sold in the United States.
The ingredients list of products containing these colors must use the common names, “cochineal extract” or “carmine.” These and any other colors that require specific declaration must be declared separately and not as “artificial colors”, etc.
Starbucks and Carmine
Starbucks recently fell under fire because of its use of cochineal extract in its Strawberries and Creme Frappuccino, which enraged vegetarians, since the company had claimed that frappucinos could be made vegan with the simple addition of soy milk.
The company responded that the coloring was used as part of a drive to get away from artificial ingredients, and although the strawberry base is not a vegan product, it helps to move away from artificial dyes.
This is an inappropriate use of the word ‘artificial’ as cochineal extract IS an artificial coloring — what the company means is synthetic dyes. To understand this important distinction see the article Why Do They Add Colors to Food.
Although the reports of allergic reactions to these extracts are real, opponents and fear mongers, in their usual disingenuous way, wrongly report that “crushed-up beetles” are being added to food, which is far from the truth, and a bit ridiculous.
