STRAWBERRY “FLAVORING”

• amyl acetate,
• amyl butyrate,
• amyl valerate,
• anethol,
• anisyl formate,
• benzyl acetate,
• benzyl isobutyrate,
• butyric acid,
• cinnamyl isobutyrate,
• cinnamyl valerate,
• cognac essential oil,
• diacetyl,
• dipropyl ketone,
• ethyl acetate,
• ethyl amyl ketone,
• ethyl butyrate,
• ethyl cinnamate,
• ethyl heptanoate,
• ethyl heptylate,
• ethyl lactate,
• ethyl methylphenylglycidate,
• ethyl nitrate,
• ethyl propionate,
• ethyl valerate,
• heliotropin,
• hydroxyphenyl-2-butanone (10 percent solution in alcohol),
• a-ionone,
• isobutyl anthranilate,
• isobutyl butyrate,
• lemon essential oil,
• maltol,
• 4-methylacetophenone,
• methyl anthranilate,
• methyl benzoate,
• methyl cinnamate,
• methyl heptine carbonate,
• methyl naphthyl ketone,
• methyl salicylate,
• mint essential oil,
• neroli essential oil,
• nerolin,
• neryl isobutyrate,
• orris butter,
• phenethyl alcohol,
• rose,
• rum ether,
• g-undecalactone,
• vanillin, and
• solvent.

Then if you’re really lucky and you see the words cochineal, carmine or carnimic acid on that brightly colored package of Gogurt, that is derived from the crushed carcasses of a South and Central American insect, a beetle type of insect to be more specific.  Cochineal can be found in everything from jello to fruit juice to candy.  It comes from the female Dactylopius coccus and takes 70,000 carcasses to make 1 pound of cochineal.

Starbucks made news in March 2012 when it leaked out that the colorant they’ve been using in their Strawberries and Creme Frappuccino has cochineal in it.  They took the stance ‘the move to cochineal was to move away from artificial ingredients’.

Hey!  I have an idea… why not use real strawberries?   Just an idea…

RESOURCES:

• www.grist.org
• www.feingold.org