We all know that food is essential to survival. But we are not content with what the earth produces, humans have tampered with the food in order to create better food, plentiful food or varied food, this has resulted in several unforeseen outcomes; Some are good and some are bad. These shocking facts about food will give you a new perspective about food that you had  taken for granted.

1 In the united states, nearly 40% of produce grown is never sold or eaten because it is too ugly.

As consumers don’t want to buy imperfect vegetables and fruits, grocery stores deny to stock them. According to report by the Natural Resources Defense Council, It is estimated six billion pounds of fruits and vegetables are wasted every year in the U.S. because they look imperfect.(source)

2 Confectioner’s glaze, a common (and shiny) coating on candies and pills is made from bug feces. The glaze is made from the resin excreted by female lac bugs which are indigenous to India and Thailand.

Shellac is also known as Confectioner’s glaze is processed into natural flakes, dissolved in ethanol to make liquid shellac. It is then sprayed on food products and even on apples to give it that shiny luster. They are used to make lacquer for hardwood floors and furniture’s.(source)

3 Many commercial bread makers use L-Cysteine, a softening agent that softens the dough and prolongs its shelf life. L-Cysteine is made from human hair and duck feathers.

Many commercial bread makers use L-Cysteine, a dough conditioner to speed up the industrial processing. This non-essential amino acid is obtained by dissolving human hair in an acid and isolating L-Cysteine through a chemical process. Most of the hair for the process is obtained from barber shop and salons. When human hair is not available or is  expensive, people use duck feathers, chicken feathers, cow horns to extract the softening agent.(source)

4 Chocolate was used as currency by the Aztecs.

The Aztecs could not grow cacao tree in the dry highlands of Mexico, so they traded for it with the Mayas and other people for the Cacao seeds. The subjects of the Aztec kingdom had to pay a tribute, people who lived in cacao growing areas paid their tribute with cacao seed.(source)

5 Fruit flavored snacks such as gummy bears are made with the same wax found in car wax. Carnauba wax, the key ingredient that gives the brilliant shine on the automobile is also found in fruit flavored snacks.

Fruit flavored snacks are processed foods which mean they have to have a long shelf life, must look, smell, taste appetizing. A bit of nifty engineering is done to ensure this longevity and one of the products used to ensure the shelf-life is carnauba wax. This wax is made from the leaves of the palm tree and is used to provide the gloss for the automobiles, wooden floors, shoe polish, and surfboards.(source)

6 Tomato Ketchup was used as a medicine to treat diarrhea in the 1800’s.

John Cook Bennet, an Ohio-based physician asserted that Tomato can be used to treat diarrhea, violent bilious attacks, and indigestion in 1834.  He published recipes for tomato ketchup which was then concentrated and sold as pills (medicine) across the country.(source)