We aren't eating real food

One of my favorite accounts to follow on X is the Food Manufacturing Guy. He posts short explanations of everyday products at the grocery store. I am familiar with some of his information, but a lot of it is brand new to me. Here's one post that caught my attention:

If an ingredient list says carmine, cochineal extract, or Natural Red 4, that's an insect. A scale insect farmed on cactus, mostly in Peru, dried and crushed. It takes around 70,000 of them to make a pound of dye. It's in strawberry yogurt, pink candy, juice, some cheese spreads, and most red lipstick. Until 2011 the label didn't have to say much. Carmine could be listed as artificial color or just color added. FDA changed it after reports of severe allergic reactions including anaphylaxis, and now the name has to be printed. The part I find interesting is what FDA left out. The petition asked that labels also state the color comes from insects. The dairy industry objected, saying there was no need, and FDA agreed. So the rule is that the word carmine has to appear, and nothing has to tell you what carmine is.

That's just the tip of the iceberg (or banana). Nothing is what it seems, and can processed food be called food at this point? It's loaded with chemicals and engineered to hijack our taste buds. 

It's a timely topic with Halloween right around the corner. I haven't passed out candy for many years because I don't want to perpetuate poisonous candy on unsuspecting children. My aim is to provide some healthier alternatives for people who still want to celebrate without the usual sugar comas.

I'm also still workshopping an eventual newsletter where I will promote my theory that the placebo effect also applies to food. This would allow @jasonleow to have his mooncake and eat it too.