The average chocolate bar contains at least eight insect pieces. But the worse is not that there are insects in your sweet food, the people who are allergic to chocolate aren’t reacting to the cocoa in it, they are reacting to cockroach and other bugs that have invaded their chocolate. Ewww, it sounds gross.
Chocolate Allergies Linked to Cockroach Parts
The people who are allergic to chocolate might be shocked to learn that their allergies are not linked to the cocoa bean – they are allergic to cockroaches. According to ABC News, in 100 grams of chocolate about 60 insect parts could be founded, but this is safe for consumption. Approved by the FDA. Except the chocolate, cockroach parts also make their way into fruits, peanuts, macaroni, cheese, and popcorn. The cockroaches can affect people with asthma, and cause migraines or itching in people who are allergic to them.
Did you know that if you see cockroach running around in your home, there are probably at least 800 hiding inside. So if you have cockroach allergy, you must take steps to get rid of them immediately. Everyone knows that cockroaches are very resilient pests. When you spray with pesticides they move from place to place to avoid treated areas and when the spray wears off, they easily come back to invade the place. So the safest way to get rid of them is by choosing cockroach control experts. Despite the many bugs around the place I live – Melbourne, my house is insect-free because of the pest control company that I use every three months. So the only bugs that bug me come from the mountains of chocolate and popcorn I consume.
Bugs Are the Key to Giving Australia More Chocolate
This statement comes from JCU (James Cook University) scientists who have been working with cocoa farmers to investigate how sustainable farming practices can support pollination and natural pest control. They said that ants and other insects such as flies and ants could play a serious role in pollinating cocoa plants.
The transformation from cocoa flowers to fruit pods relies upon small midges that develop in fallen cocoa fruits. The idea is that these little flies reproduce in rotting organic material and they attract numbers of predators, such as spiders and skinks to feed on any potential cocoa plant pests. This would effectively eliminate the need for pesticide use because a naturally occurring animals do the control job perfectly.
The general idea of these scientists is to increase the chocolate production and biodiversity at the same time.
Why Rodent Hair and Insect Fragments in Your Chocolate are Okay
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration strictly defines the levels of natural defects in foods that couldn’t be a health hazard to humans. But this doesn’t mean bruising on apples is the same as mold, rodent excrements, or maggots. It’s important to note that just because eight is the maximum allowed amount of insects parts doesn’t mean that there are exactly so much fragments in every gram of cinnamon.
So avoiding insects in your food is impossible because you can’t to stop eating.