# Beaver anal gland extract ought to appear on food labels **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [August 3, 2014, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaver-anal-gland-extract-ought-to-appear-on-food-labels/694736 "2014-08-03T20:08:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![GargoyleWB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gargoylewb/32/199_2.png) [@GargoyleWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GargoyleWB)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2014, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaver-anal-gland-extract-ought-to-appear-on-food-labels/694736/61 "2014-08-05T19:05:03Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > I wonder who the first person was to finish skinning and cooking the beaver and have that last little bit left and say “hmm, doesn’t taste to bad, but a little bit in the cookie dough”… Simple kitchen accident. “Kids, who wants to lick the beaver–I mean beater!” The rest is history. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2014, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaver-anal-gland-extract-ought-to-appear-on-food-labels/694736/62 "2014-08-05T19:08:39Z")
> [@GargoyleWB](#): > > Simple kitchen accident. “Kids, who wants to lick the beaver–I mean beater!” > > The rest is history. Uh…I think that means something else entirely. ---
**Author:** ![Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/try2b_comprehensive/32/65_2.png) [@Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Try2B_Comprehensive)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2014, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaver-anal-gland-extract-ought-to-appear-on-food-labels/694736/63 "2014-08-06T13:36:20Z")
> [@Half\_Man\_Half\_Wit](#): > > What’s that supposed to mean? The proposed slippery slope into information madness is absurd. One person says, “label the ingredients, please”, and in response people come up with this crazy list of things that completely changes the subject away from labeling the ingredients. It is kind of like opponents of gay marriage accusing gay people of being pedophiles- it is just totally off-topic. ---
**Author:** ![Skammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skammer/32/143_2.png) [@Skammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skammer)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2014, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaver-anal-gland-extract-ought-to-appear-on-food-labels/694736/64 "2014-08-07T14:21:25Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > It doesn’t say anything here about lark’s vomit. Ah, it does, at the bottom of the label, after “monosodium glutamate”. What do you want, a great red label: “WARNING: LARK’S VOMIT!!”? ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2014, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaver-anal-gland-extract-ought-to-appear-on-food-labels/694736/65 "2014-08-07T16:31:31Z")
> [@Try2B\_Comprehensive](#): > > The proposed slippery slope into information madness is absurd. One person says, “label the ingredients, please”, and in response people come up with this crazy list of things that completely changes the subject away from labeling the ingredients. > > . All food products with castoreum in American are labeled, since there _are no food products in America with castoreum._ Why are you missing that point? It’s like demanding that ground up Egyptian Mummy must be clearly identified on food labels. ---
**Author:** ![gnoitall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bb73d2/32.png) [@gnoitall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnoitall)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2014, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaver-anal-gland-extract-ought-to-appear-on-food-labels/694736/66 "2014-08-07T17:41:57Z")
> [@Skammer](#): > > Ah, it does, at the bottom of the label, after “monosodium glutamate”. > > What do you want, a great red label: “WARNING: LARK’S VOMIT!!”? And, also, “raw unboned real dead frog”. 😕 ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2014, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaver-anal-gland-extract-ought-to-appear-on-food-labels/694736/67 "2014-08-07T23:52:21Z")
Deboned? Then how can it be crunchy? ---
**Author:** ![andros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e480ec/32.png) [@andros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/andros)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2014, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaver-anal-gland-extract-ought-to-appear-on-food-labels/694736/68 "2014-08-08T00:07:39Z")
I expected some sort of mock beaver. ---
**Author:** ![Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/try2b_comprehensive/32/65_2.png) [@Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Try2B_Comprehensive)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2014, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaver-anal-gland-extract-ought-to-appear-on-food-labels/694736/69 "2014-08-08T00:34:22Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > All food products with castoreum in American are labeled, since there _are no food products in America with castoreum._ Why are you missing that point? It’s like demanding that ground up Egyptian Mummy must be clearly identified on food labels. How can you be so sure? The cite to this point included claims from just 5 manufacturers IIRC. There could be castoreum in every product with the words ‘natural flavors’ in the ingredients list. If you can prove the claim, fine, thread over. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2014, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaver-anal-gland-extract-ought-to-appear-on-food-labels/694736/70 "2014-08-08T02:13:12Z")
Look, only 300 pounds of that shit is made per year, taken from a threatened or endangered species that is trapped like it was 200 years ago. It is so valuable that it is only used in expensive perfumes. The Swedish scientists you put so much stock in did not say that it IS used in food, but merely that it CAN BE without running afoul of any laws. They’re scientists; they’re literal like that. But the mere economics of the matter makes your continued obstinance in the face of reality reflect badly on you. And all sorts of stuff that has a gross name or icky provenance is used in food without any special labelling, as has been pointed out to you time and time again. All food can be gross, if you think about it long and hard. But demanding special labelling for this, your personal bugaboo? Give it up. It makes you sound stupid. ---
**Author:** ![DocCathode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doccathode/32/18773_2.png) [@DocCathode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DocCathode)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2014, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaver-anal-gland-extract-ought-to-appear-on-food-labels/694736/71 "2014-08-08T02:24:48Z")
> [@Try2B\_Comprehensive](#): > > There could be castoreum in every product with the words ‘natural flavors’ in the ingredients list. As has been pointed out, not if that product bears the mark of a reputable kosher certification agency. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2014, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaver-anal-gland-extract-ought-to-appear-on-food-labels/694736/72 "2014-08-08T02:49:09Z")
Which it wouldn’t, as beavers aren’t kosher. ---
**Author:** ![Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/try2b_comprehensive/32/65_2.png) [@Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Try2B_Comprehensive)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2014, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaver-anal-gland-extract-ought-to-appear-on-food-labels/694736/73 "2014-08-08T03:32:42Z")
> [@DocCathode](#): > > As has been pointed out, not if that product bears the mark of a reputable kosher certification agency. Right. That isn’t a bad suggestion. But I’m not Jewish, and I shouldn’t have to keep kosher just to know what is/isn’t in my food. > [@dropzone](#): > > And all sorts of stuff that has a gross name or icky provenance is used in food without any special labelling, as has been pointed out to you time and time again. All food can be gross, if you think about it long and hard. I assume you are talking about this kind of thing? > [@](#): > > If you stop and think about it, a lot of stuff we eat is pretty weird. I’m not talking out there, like haggis, or Rocky Mountain Oysters. I mean, look at dairy. It’s like, “Hey, I’m just going to go and squeeze those dangly things on the cow and drink whatever comes out!” Or eggs? Who thought it would be a good idea to eat something that popped out of a chicken’s butt?\* > > However, if you’re looking for the really gross stuff: > [9 Horrifying Foods You Won’t Believe People Actually Eat](http://www.cracked.com/article_20709_9-horrifying-foods-you-wont-believe-people-actually-eat.html) > > [The 6 Most Terrifying Foods in the World](http://www.cracked.com/article_14979_the-6-most-terrifying-foods-in-world.html) > > [Steve Don’t Eat It](http://www.thesneeze.com/steve-dont-eat-it/) > > [The Gallery of Regrettable Food](http://lileks.com/institute/gallery/index.html) Those were some fun links- I learned something I didn’t already know. But I didn’t see any examples where the ingredients were not labeled, unless it was something obvious like digging up a grub and eating it raw- not much confusion about what is being eaten in a case like that. In the case of castoreum- assuming it is used- it isn’t labeled. Call me names, I still don’t think that’s right. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2014, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaver-anal-gland-extract-ought-to-appear-on-food-labels/694736/74 "2014-08-08T03:51:54Z")
Why not? Do you want every damn thing that gets lumped under “natural flavors” labelled? Labels would turn into encyclopedias. That’s what we have the FDA for. All that stuff needs to be okayed by them before it can be used and, unlike some additives, nobody’s gonna die from the faintest whiff of beaver ass, and somebody else might have their own distaste for something else. But as DrDeth pointed out, “All food products with castoreum in American are labeled, since there are no food products in America with castoreum. Why are you missing that point? It’s like demanding that ground up Egyptian Mummy must be clearly identified on food labels.” Arguing about this is insensible because it is a non-issue. ---
**Author:** ![vivalostwages](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/d07c76/32.png) [@vivalostwages](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vivalostwages)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2014, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaver-anal-gland-extract-ought-to-appear-on-food-labels/694736/75 "2014-08-08T03:54:54Z")
FYI: _vanilla_ and _vagina_ essentially mean the same thing. ---
**Author:** ![Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/try2b_comprehensive/32/65_2.png) [@Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Try2B_Comprehensive)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2014, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaver-anal-gland-extract-ought-to-appear-on-food-labels/694736/76 "2014-08-08T04:00:30Z")
> [@dropzone](#): > > Why not? Do you want every damn thing that gets lumped under “natural flavors” labelled? Yah, maybe that’s what we need. > [@](#): > > Labels would turn into encyclopedias. I seriously doubt it. > [@](#): > > That’s what we have the FDA for. All that stuff needs to be okayed by them before it can be used and, unlike some additives, nobody’s gonna die from the faintest whiff of beaver ass, and somebody else might have their own distaste for something else. But as DrDeth pointed out, “All food products with castoreum in American are labeled, since there are no food products in America with castoreum. Why are you missing that point? It’s like demanding that ground up Egyptian Mummy must be clearly identified on food labels.” Arguing about this is insensible because it is a non-issue. Nothing against the FDA. In the case of castoreum, for example, LaCroix sparkling water says it uses ‘natural flavors’. That seems like a pretty benign thing- no calories, no sugar, no nothing really. But if it contains castoreum, it is at the least not vegetarian, which is going to piss off vegetarians, along with people like me. And again, AFAIK it isn’t established that castoreum is not used in food products in America. A few manufacturers said they don’t use it, and people are interpreting that to mean that it isn’t used anywhere. Again, prove that it isn’t used at all and yes, the question becomes moot. ---
**Author:** ![UDS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecae2f/32.png) [@UDS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UDS)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2014, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaver-anal-gland-extract-ought-to-appear-on-food-labels/694736/77 "2014-08-08T04:24:50Z")
> [@dropzone](#): > > Why not? Do you want every damn thing that gets lumped under “natural flavors” labelled? Labels would turn into encyclopedias. Unless a product contains a great many different natural flavours, there is no reason why this should be so. > [@dropzone](#): > > That’s what we have the FDA for. All that stuff needs to be okayed by them before it can be used and, unlike some additives, nobody’s gonna die from the faintest whiff of beaver ass, and somebody else might have their own distaste for something else. The FDA’s job is to ensure that the stuff won’t injure me. Whether I want to eat it or not is my decision, not the FDA’s, and I can’t rely on FDA clearance to assure me that I want to eat it. As it happens, I would have no problem with castoreum, but that’s not quite the same as the FDA deciding that I should have no problem with castoreum and, therefore, do not need to be told about it. > [@dropzone](#): > > But as DrDeth pointed out, “All food products with castoreum in American are labeled, since there are no food products in America with castoreum. Why are you missing that point? It’s like demanding that ground up Egyptian Mummy must be clearly identified on food labels.” Arguing about this is insensible because it is a non-issue. Not really. If a food processor _can_ put something unexpected into my food and not tell me about it, that’s a problem even if he isn’t putting this particular unexpected thing into my food. I don’t see the huge diffiulty here. If the FDA has approved something, then it has a name and FDA-approved information about it (including what it is and where it comes from) can be contained in a publicly accessible database. For that matter, it can have a number or code as well, like the EU’s “E number” system. Given that nearly all food products already have ingredient labelling requirements, and that producers already know what they are putting into their food and know that it is FDA-approved, it’s not a huge burden to require producers to include on the label the names or codes of the food additives they use. Anyone who is concerned about this can then look up the ingredient and decide if it’s something he wants to eat, regardless of whether his reasons for not wanting to eat it are scientific, pseudoscientific, ethical, religious or aesthetic. ---
**Author:** ![Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/try2b_comprehensive/32/65_2.png) [@Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Try2B_Comprehensive)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2014, 4:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaver-anal-gland-extract-ought-to-appear-on-food-labels/694736/78 "2014-08-08T04:47:42Z")
> [@](#): > > That’s what we have the FDA for. All that stuff needs to be okayed by them before it can be used and, unlike some additives, nobody’s gonna die from the faintest whiff of beaver ass, and somebody else might have their own distaste for something else. This isn’t very good reasoning. “Nobody is gonna die”? What kind of standard is that? “Somebody might have their own distaste for something else”? So what? What interest is served by deceiving people into eating things they don’t want to eat? ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2014, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaver-anal-gland-extract-ought-to-appear-on-food-labels/694736/79 "2014-08-08T23:37:07Z")
Fine. Call your Congressman and demand that all labels carry a note stating that the product contains no beaver butt, unless they do, in which case the label should clearly state in contrasting letters “WARNING: CONTAINS BEAVER BUTT!” which should amuse or confuse the junior high boys. 😉 In reality, I’m a bit on your side. A few years before the FDA required that [sulphites](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/687/is-there-any-danger-from-sulfites-in-wine) be labelled on foods my wife and I, both asthmatics, went into anaphylactic shock after eating some pickled peppers (not a full peck, just some). It was good that, as asthmatics, we had plenty of the right drugs close at hand to treat it or we might’ve died. So I check the labels of all the usual suspects before buying or eating them, and I assume that things with hidden labels, like restaurant food, is booby trapped. Although with pickled stuff in a jar I can usually tell at a glance because sulfited products have a blanched, ghostly color and look like something found on a shelf in the Biology department. But beaver musk? IMHO, your time would be better spent lobbying Congress for better labels in general, though beaver anal gland extract might be a good poster child for your campaign. What the hell; go for it. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2014, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaver-anal-gland-extract-ought-to-appear-on-food-labels/694736/80 "2014-08-09T18:19:33Z")
> [@dropzone](#): > > Look, only 300 pounds of that shit is made per year, taken from a threatened or endangered species that is trapped like it was 200 years ago. “Threatened or endangered?” _Beavers?_ [Tell it to Argentina.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beaver_eradication_in_Tierra_del_Fuego) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaver-anal-gland-extract-ought-to-appear-on-food-labels/694736.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/beaver-anal-gland-extract-ought-to-appear-on-food-labels/694736.md?page=5)