BREAD CONTAINS A PROTEIN DERIVED FROM HUMAN HAIR, BANANAS AREN'T FOR VEGETARIANS AND CAKE MIX CONTAINS THE KEY INGREDIANT IN ANTI-FREEZE: CONSUMER SECRETS REVEALED
- New report reveals the secrets behind consumer favourites – from wine and beer to cake mix and leather goods
- Supermarket bread contains a protein from human hair to give it a longer shelf life and ice cream contains castoreum; a ‘natural flavouring’ from beavers’ castor sacs
- Findings span food, drink and retail
Researchers commissioned by Privilege insurance have revealed the top 20 secrets behind British consumers’ favourite staples, from the orange juice you drink every day to the shoes on your feet.
The research, which took two months to carry out, spans the food, drink, retail and cosmetics sectors.
Findings include the fact that bread contains a protein that comes from human hair – mostly sourced from barbershops in Asia – to give it a longer shelf-life, bananas aren’t necessarily vegetarian-friendly as the pesticide they are sprayed with is made from shrimp and crab shells, and the key ingredient in anti-freeze is used to stop ready-made cake mixes clumping together.
Consumers enjoying an ice cream after dinner will be shocked to find that the ‘vanilla’ taste actually comes from the ‘castor sacs’ of beavers – something that is labelled as ‘natural flavouring’ - and certain chicken nuggets are only 50 per cent chicken, including a chemical found in breast implants. Gelatine, made from boiling animal bones, is also found in cereals, to make the sugar stick to the cereal.
In the retail sector, researchers for Privilege found that products labelled ‘leather’ in the shops don’t actually have to be 100 per cent leather. Products labelled as the luxurious ‘Egyptian Cotton’ only have to contain five per cent of the high-end product and British wool only has to contain 50 per cent of wool from British sheep in its mix.
It has also been revealed that certain red cosmetics products, including lipsticks, get their colouring from dead, crushed beetles that have been boiled with ammonia.
Dan Simson, head of Privilege Insurance, said: “Privilege believes in straight talking and consumer confidence, so we commissioned this research to confirm or dispute once and for all, some of the every day consumer scenarios we are all faced with.
“Some of the findings are shocking and more should be done to encourage labelling that doesn’t insincerely disguise something as ‘natural’. It is paramount that the consumer has all the facts so they can make a logical and sensible choice about the products they are buying.”
Shock Consumer Facts Revealed
Source: Privilege Insurance
See notes to editors for sources of consumer facts
Rank |
Fact |
Category |
Detail |
1 |
Some bread has a special ingredient in it: human hair |
Food |
L-Cysteine – an amino acid used to prolong shelf-life in products such as commercial bread – comes from human hair. It has been reported that most of the hair used to make L-Cysteine comes from China, where it is gathered from barbershops and hair salons. You can avoid L-Cysteine by buying fresh bread from a local baker, as it is not an additive in flour. Steer clear of fast food places who use this. |
2 |
The "vanilla" taste in ice cream actually comes from beavers’ castor sacs |
Food |
If you are eating vanilla, strawberry or raspberry ice-cream, you may be eating castoreum. Castoreum, which comes from the castor sacs of male and female beavers and is used by them – in combination with urine – to mark their territories, is an FDA-approved food additive popular in ice-creams, and allowed to be called "natural flavouring", meaning you probably don't know that you are eating it. It is also used in perfumes. |
3 |
There is anti-freeze in baked goods |
Food |
Used to stop fat clumping together in your trusty ready-made cake mix (i.e. Betty Crocker), propylene glycol has another handy use – as the key ingredient in antifreeze. The limit in the EU is three grams per kilogram. |
4 |
Bananas aren’t necessarily vegetarian-friendly |
Food |
The pesticide Chitosan, which fights bacteria and prevents bananas from over-ripening, is made from shrimp and crab shells. |
5 |
Certain chicken nuggets contain the chemical found in breast implants |
Food |
Certain chicken nuggets are actually only about 50 per cent actual chicken; the rest comprises synthetic ingredients, including dimethylpolysiloxane - a chemical used in silicone that can be found in Silly Putty as well as breast implant filler. |
6 |
Red sweets are made with crushed up beetles that have been boiled in a pan with ammonia |
Food |
Red sweets or any other foods which are coloured with a red dye will more often than not contain animal products. Carmine, which is made from dead crushed up beetles, comes about when the insects are boiled with sodium carbonate or ammonia. The end product is an attractive, bright red dye. It takes 70,000 of these insects to make a pound of dye. |
7 |
Insect excretions are used to make jelly beans shiny |
Food |
Shellac is a resin secreted by the female lac bug. Shellac functions as a tough natural primer, sanding sealant, tannin-blocker, odour-blocker, stain, and high-gloss varnish. It is used in combination with beeswax to give jelly beans their final buff and polish. |
8 |
Gelatine is used in surprising places |
Food |
Gelatine, made from boiled animal bones, is what gives marshmallows their bouncy shape, what gives non-fat products such as best selling yogurts, their rich, creamy texture and what makes the sugar stick to certain brands of cereal. The protein is made from boiling animal parts in water and appears as a binding agent in many products. |
9 |
70 per cent of olive oil is fake |
Food |
Olive oil is one of the most polluted products in the EU and a target of the ‘agromafia’ in Italy, who now control most of the olive oil production and marketing. There are claims that 70 per cent of the extra virgin oil sold is adulterated; cut with cheaper oil (sometimes from another source such as canola oil or colza oil, or sometimes from poorer quality olive oil), then chemically deodorized and then flavoured. Some businesses also claim EU subsidies for growing olives in Italy while actually importing them from elsewhere. |
10 |
Your tomatoes from Wood Lane Farm, might be from Senegal |
Food |
A product’s label might sound British, but this doesn’t mean it is. It could come from Morocco, Senegal, Denmark, Holland, Argentina, Chile, Poland or Spain. |
11 |
Fresh fruit and vegetables aren’t necessarily fresh |
Food |
Apples are picked when they’re slightly unripe, treated with a chemical called 1-methylcyclopropene, waxed, boxed, stacked on pallets, and kept in cold storage warehouses for an average of 9-12 months. |
12 |
Fish bladders are used to filter beers and wines |
Drink |
Some beers and stouts such as Guinness have particles of fish bladder, known as isinglass, in them. The swim-bladder of a fish is used as part of the filtering process to remove excess yeast. |
13 |
Red wine with "hints of toasty oak" might not have been aged in oak barrels at all |
Drink |
Oak essence is an extract made by soaking oak chips in high-proof alcohol, allowing winemakers to add oak flavouring without going through the actual aging process. |
14 |
Fish might be in your orange juice |
Drink |
Any orange juice claiming to be 'heart healthy' contains Omega-3 fatty acids which come from fish oils. If an orange juice declares that it contains Omega-3s, vegetarians should check where they come from. |
15 |
Some producers water down wine |
Drink |
If they want to produce a low alcohol wine, some producers use 'spinning cones' or reverse osmosis to reduce the amount of alcohol during the production process. |
16 |
Some Egyptian Cottons are only five per cent Egyptian Cotton |
Retail |
If a shop claims to be selling an Egyptian cotton bedsheet, it could well be from Egypt but it isn't necessarily from the plant where the luxury, world famous ‘Egyptian Cotton’ comes from. A product needs less than five per cent of genuine Egyptian Cotton for them to be able to label it so. |
17 |
Leather goods aren’t necessarily a hundred per cent leather |
Retail |
A product does not have to be made of 100 per cent leather to be classified as a leather product. For example, the EC Directive on Footwear Labelling states that a genuine leather shoes must contain the following proportions of leather: Upper - 80 per cent of surface area, lining/sock – 80 per cent of surface area, sole – 80 per cent of volume. |
18 |
British wool isn’t all that British |
Retail |
To be called 'British Wool' the product needs to be made from at least 50 per cent British grown wool - the other 50 per cent can be non-British woolor up to 25 per cent synthetic fibres. |
19 |
Famous luxury brands are using cheap labour to make their clothes but not passing the savings on |
Retail |
Famous luxury brands often play up to their heritage (i.e. made in italy). However, many luxury brand items are made in factories in developing countries, where labour is vastly cheaper. To get away with producing them at cheap costs, but selling them at very high prices, some brands hide the 'Made in China' label in the bottom of an inside pocket or stamp it ‘black on black’ on the back side of a tiny logo flap. Some bypass the 'provenance' laws requiring labels that indicate where goods are produced by having 90 per cent of the bag, sweater, suit or shoes made in China, and then attaching the final bits - the handle, for example - in Italy, thus earning a "Made in Italy label". Some simply replace the original label with one stating it was made in ‘Western Europe’. To please customers for the "Made in Italy" label, several luxury companies now have their goods made in Italy by illegal Chinese labourers. |
20 |
Red cosmetics dye |
Cosmetics |
The same dye found in food is also used in certain cosmetic products (including lipsticks). Look out for any ingredients list that include carmine, cochineal extract or natural red 4. Carmine is listed as additive E 120 in the EU. |
ENDS
For more information, please contact: Fran Langdon or Laura Nugent at Van Communications:
[email protected] / [email protected] / 020 3179 0720
Notes to editors:
Research carried out by Opinium during July and August 2016.
Details of sources in below table.
Rank |
Fact |
Source |
1 |
Some bread has a special ingredient in it: human hair |
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/wordofmouth/2013/may/13/10-gross-ingredients-food-horsemeat-scandal |
2 |
The "vanilla" taste in ice cream actually comes from beavers’ anal and urine sections |
Source mentions FDA
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/weird-news/9-things-weve-been-eating-7343641 |
3 |
There is anti-freeze in baked goods |
BBC Link refers to EU regulations |
4 |
Bananas aren’t necessarily vegetarian-friendly? |
Link refers to researchers from Tianjin University of Science and Technology |
5 |
Certain chicken nuggets contain the chemical found in breast implants |
Link refers to Panorama as a source |
6 |
Red sweets are made with crushed up beetles that have been boiled in a pan with ammonia |
Source includes EU approved list |
7 |
Insect excretions are used to make jelly beans shiny |
Link shows an example of a jelly bean brand with shellac listed in the ingredients |
8 |
Gelatine is used in surprising places |
Sources: Marshmallow, cereal and yogurts mention beef gelatine in the ingredients |
9 |
70 per cent of olive oil is fake |
|
10 |
Your tomatoes from Wood Lane Farm, might be from Senegal |
Links refer to the National Farmers Union |
11 |
Fresh fruit and vegetables aren’t necessarily fresh? |
US: http://www.foodrenegade.com/your-apples-year-old/ |
12 |
Fish bladders are used to filter beers and wines |
Link includes quotes from Guinness-owner Diageo |
13 |
Red wine with "hints of toasty oak" might not have been aged in oak barrels at all |
Link includes quotes from winemakers such as Steve Pessagno |
14 |
Fish might be in your orange juice |
Link includes example of an orange juice listing the ingredients |
15 |
Some producers water down wine |
Links include an EU document http://www.telegraph.co.uk/foodanddrink/wine/10245126/Dont-insult-good-wine-by-reducing-its-potency.html http://ec.europa.eu/agriculture/organic/eu-policy/expert-advice/documents/final-reports/final_report_egtop_on_wine_en.pdf |
16 |
Some Egyptian Cottons are only five per cent Egyptian Cotton |
http://www.valerianne.com/dc/productedu-egypt-cotton.html |
17 |
Leather goods aren’t necessarily a hundred per cent leather |
Source: EC Directive |
18 |
British wool isn’t all that British |
Links refer to the British Wool Marketing Board |
19 |
Famous luxury brands are using cheap labour to make their clothes but not passing the savings on |
Source includes quotes from high end designer spokesperson |
20 |
Red cosmetics dye |
Source includes EU approved list |
Privilege
Privilege Insurance specialises in car insurance for safe drivers. It also offers home insurance and breakdown cover by phone or on-line.
Privilege general insurance policies are underwritten by U K Insurance Limited, Registered office: The Wharf, Neville Street, Leeds LS1 4AZ. Registered in England and Wales No 1179980. U K Insurance Limited is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority.
Privilege and U K Insurance Limited are both part of Direct Line Insurance Group plc.
Customers can find out more about Privilege’s products or get a quote by calling 0345 246 0515 or visiting www.privilege.co.uk