Sabron, youâ??ve been the victim of some social folklore, and now youâ??re further spreading that folklore by passing on a good bit of inaccurate information to others.

Mr. Devious has accurately questioned your grub worm statistic. Grub worms arenâ??t anywhere near as big as cattle. Thereâ??d have to be large, industrial grub worm farms in order to supply 40% of McDonaldsâ?? beef supply. That 40% figure is neither practical nor credible. Everyone should worry a lot more about the saturated fat content of McDonalds beef rather than about grub worms, which, if they were used, would provide much healthier protein.

The fruit fly maggot statistic is probably accurate. Fruit flies are miniscule, and they do like to hang around fruit and tomatoes. Iâ??m sure maggots as well as the actual fly bodies do get into cans. Good thing the canners are required by law to use stringent sterilization procedures. Insects provide healthy protein, and plenty of cultures eat bugs routinely.

Read here about cochineal dye. Itâ??s derived from the insect but that doesnâ??t mean the actual whole beetles are used for red coloring in foods: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cochineal

I donâ??t know what bright white chemical youâ??re talking about in frosting or paint, but there are plenty of food-safe chemicals that are used in industry, too. (And plenty of unsafe ones as well. Keep reading.)

The red coloring in ham, cold cuts, hot dogs, etc., isnâ??t from sodium ascorbate, which is vitamin C. Itâ??s actually from myoglobin, a protein which carries oxygen to the muscles of all animals, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_meat, and often from carbon monoxide gas, of all things, which reacts with the myoglobin to cause a bright red color and slow down the natural oxidation that would occur in meat and make it turn brownish gray. Hereâ??s some info about the use of CO gas in meats: http://www.consumerfed.org/pdfs/CFA_...20in%20meat%22

Once the red color is achieved, a carcinogenic preservative called sodium nitrite helps to maintain that redness after the meat is packaged and processed, making it look fresher. Hereâ??s some info on both sodium ascorbate and sodium nitrite:
http://www.greatvistachemicals.com/v...rbic-acid.html
Sodium nitrite has been strongly linked with pancreatic and other types of cancer: http://www.organicconsumers.org/food...meat050305.cfm

Most knowledgeable people know that gelatin is derived from the bones and cartilage of animals, and vegetarians, whoâ??re an intelligent bunch, keenly aware of what theyâ??re eating, are well aware of this fact. Most glues are derived from animal bones and connective tissue, too. If youâ??ve ever cooked with beef or chicken bones, youâ??ll see first-hand how gelatin forms.

Propylene glycol alginate is derived from algae and used widely as a thickener and stabilizer in foods. http://www.fao.org/docrep/W6355E/w6355e0u.htm
http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a1_223a.html This chemical doesnâ??t cause the foaminess in beer, as you stated. It simply helps the beer maintain any foam that occurs. Read here, and youâ??ll see that it should probably be the least of our worries when it comes to ingredients in beer: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4942262.stm

Finally, canthaxanthin is indeed a food additive, but itâ??s responsible for pink coloration. Itâ??s fed to salmon to give it that nice pink color. In animal feed in the U.S., itâ??s used to help ensure pink meat and also as an antibiotic. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canthaxanthin

The yellow fat you see in chickens is because of both carotin, a naturally occurring pigment in animal blood and plasma, and xanthophyll. Both carotin and xanthophyll are lipochrome pigments. Xanthophyll is also why the yolks of chicken eggs are yellow. Chickens get xanthophyll, just as we do, through a diet of yellow foods. Chicken feed is largely made of corn, hence the yellow fat color. If they ate a squash-heavy diet, their fat would be yellow, too. Human fat, by the way, is yellowish, too, for the same reasons.
Hereâ??s some info on these pigments: http://www.jbc.org/cgi/reprint/77/2/...icken%20fat%22

Forgive the length of this post, but as a medical student whoâ??s hard at work in a biochemistry class right now, I felt it was important to set the record straight with more accurate information.
birdgirl73 Reviewed by birdgirl73 on . The Stuff inside Food McDonalds has been said to use 40% Grubworms in thier food A can of tomato soup has up to 4 Crushed fruit fly maggots inside A can of mixxed fruit ALSO has up to 4 crushed fruit fly maggots inside Few people know that the food coloring listed as cochineal extract comes from female beetles. Food activists want to spread the word. When you dig into a strawberry Yoplait yogurt, take a moment to contemplate where the beautiful pink color comes from. Strawberries? Think again. It comes Rating: 5