To most of the world, this was old news—insects are considered staples and even delicacies in many cultures. But Western media still let out an audible cringe at the thought of crunching down on chitin. We are always on insect territory. Try as we might with insecticides and other engineered poisons, bugs crawl all over our food to feed and procreate on it. When we harvest and package our crops, a lot of bugs come along for the ride.
All of these are merely aesthetic limits. Nevertheless, bugs are making it into your gut whether you see them or not. So, I hate to break it to you, but you already eat bugs.
Not nearly enough for you to recognize it or to potentially harm you, but down the hatch they go. Bugs like thrips and aphids have to be tiny indeed to pepper our food with their parts without us noticing. Just four of these bugs would be the same weight as a Big Mac.
Popeye has eaten a lot of bug burgers. Bug beer is even better. Dessert is the same. Called "food defects," these dismembered creatures and their excrement are the unfortunate byproduct of growing and harvesting food.
Is chocolate good or bad for health? Read More. So while there's no way to get rid of all the creatures that might hitch a ride along the food processing chain, the FDA has established standards to keep food defects to a minimum.
Let's go through a typical day of meals to see what else you're not aware that you're eating. The coffee beans you grind for breakfast are allowed by the FDA to have an average of 10 milligrams or more animal poop per pound. Which drink is best for hydration? Hint: It isn't water. As you sprinkle black pepper on your morning eggs, try not to think about the fact you may be eating more than 40 insect fragments with every teaspoon, along with a smidgen of rodent hair.
Let's say you packed peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for everyone's lunch. Good choice! Peanut butter is one of the most controlled foods in the FDA list; an average of one or more rodent hairs and 30 or so insect fragments are allowed for every grams, which is 3. Want to live longer? You may want to ditch these drinks. The typical serving size for peanut butter is 2 tablespoons unless you slather. That means each 2 tablespoon-peanut butter sandwich would only have about eight insect fragments and a teensy tiny bit of rodent filth.
Unfortunately, jelly and jam are not as controlled. Apple butter can contain an average of four or more rodent hairs for every 3. Oh, and that isn't counting the unknown numbers of teensy mites, aphids, and thrips. Did you pack some of the kid-sized boxes of raisins for your child's mid-afternoon snack? Golden raisins are allowed to contain 35 fruit fly eggs as well as 10 or more whole insects or their equivalent heads and legs for every 8 ounces.
That's more than 4 eggs and a whole insect in each box. After work drink. Other items that may be infested include birdseed, dry pet food, ornamental corn, dried flowers and plants, garden seeds, potpourri and rodent baits. Pantry pests are most likely to infest products that have been opened but they also can get into unopened paper, thin cardboard, and plastic, foil or cellophane-wrapped packages.
They may chew their way into packages or crawl in through folds and seams. Insects inside an infested package multiply and can spread to other stored foods not only in the same area but in other rooms in a home.
All insect stages egg, larva, pupa, and adult may be present at the same time in infested products. A stored food product can become infested from production until it arrives in your home. But stored food is most likely to become infested in the grocery store or in homes.
Most pantry pests also infest stored grain and may be found outdoors. Food products that are left in storage for a long time are prone to infestation.
But foods of any age can become infested. Washing areas with detergents, ammonia, or bleach will not prevent insect infestation. There is no evidence that placing bay leaves or sticks of spearmint gum in a cupboard will prevent or get rid of stored food insect pests.
Not all small beetles or moths found indoors are pantry pests. If there is not a direct association with food, be sure the insects are identified correctly by an expert to determine whether they are a stored product food insect. When you know a stored product problem is present, be sure to examine all susceptible food as there could be more than one infested source. When inspecting, look at the top surface of products with a flashlight or pour the package contents onto a cookie sheet.
Use a vacuum cleaner to thoroughly clean cabinets and shelves, especially in cracks and corners. This will pick up crawling insects and spilled or infested material. Empty the vacuum cleaner or discard the vacuum cleaner bag after use to prevent re-infestation. Washing shelves with detergent, bleach, ammonia, or disinfectants will not keep pantry pests from returning and could be dangerous if the chemicals come in contact with food.
To prevent re-infestation, store foods in sealable glass, metal, or heavy plastic containers or in the freezer or refrigerator until you are sure the infestation is gone. It is not unusual to see an Indianmeal moth flying for up to three weeks after the infested food has been thrown out. However, if you continue to see Indianmeal moths after three weeks, that means there is an infested food source that you haven't found yet.
If you have older food products and you are not sure if they are infested, you can put them in the freezer at 0 degrees for at least four days or in shallow cookie sheets or pans in an oven at degrees for at least 30 minutes.
These temperatures will kill any eggs or insects. If insects are infesting ornaments or decorations made with plant products or seeds, place the items in a freezer for at least four days. Joanna Fantozzi. Mealworm, maggot, and roach pieces are found in everyday foods like chocolate, coffee, and wheat flour.
It's totally legal: The FDA allows small amounts of insect matter in our food. Sign up for notifications from Insider! Stay up to date with what you want to know. Loading Something is loading. Email address.
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