The claim
A sharepic and a screenshot of an article show that insects are already contained in our food. They are said to be hidden behind the additives E120 and E904.
Our conclusion
E120 and E904 stand for real carmine and shellac, respectively. Both are products of insects/lice. But not the insects themselves in one piece. The list of products is also only partially correct.
We recently reported that various insects such as the house cricket have been approved as food additives. HERE
A sharepic and a screenshot of an article are now circulating on social media and messenger services. It is claimed here that insects are already contained in the foods we know.
Warning about E120 and E904
A screenshot for an article shows a list of foods that we may have already eaten, or at least some of. These are said to already contain insects.

Products from Müllermilch, Trolli, Mentos, Kinder, m&m's, Ehrmann and Chupa Chups are listed here. link to the corresponding article also included.
Some beetles are shown in a sharepic that also contains Arabic writing. – Accompanied by the German-language text:
“Warning
Plain text Sharepic / German part (sic!)
All foods that contain these two symbols
E120 and E904
contain insects”

Of course, you immediately associate this information with the beetles shown. However, they have nothing to do with the “ingredients” listed.
A short excursion into beetle science. The image is used on this site and credits “The Trustees of the Natural History Museum, London” as copyright. Pictured here are, for example, the Hercules beetle (left), the Juchten beetle / hermit beetle (2nd from the left, above), a Prosopocoilus confucius (4th from the left, above) or the longhorned beetle / Chrysanthia viridissima (5th from the left, above).
But which insects have to do with E120 and E904? And what is that? And are these actually included in the delicacies listed?
___STEADY_PAYWALL___
E120 and E904 – carmine and shellac
E120 – also known as “real cochineal”, cochineal, cochineal and crimson , is a natural dye. It is obtained from the fertilized and dried females of the scarlet scale louse or cochineal louse. The dye is found in the eggs of pregnant lice.
The dye is used in the cosmetics and food industries. Sweets, drinks, lipsticks and even shampoos can contain carmine. This is declared under the name “E120” or “real carmine”.
Synthetically produced carmine can be recognized by the number “E124”.
Real carmine is considered harmless.
E904 – Shellac is obtained from the secretion of female scale insects, which they secrete to protect their eggs. This secretion forms a crust on the branches of the trees where the lice live.
This so-called breeding varnish contains the red dye (laccaic acid). To produce shellac, it is washed out with diluted lye and the wax is bleached with hypochlorite and activated carbon.
Shellac is used as a coating agent for confectionery, fruit, nuts, coffee beans and snacks, but is also found in chewing gum.
Shellac is also considered harmless (except for a few allergies).
Chupa Chups, Mentos and Co.
The following products contain real carmine:
Kinder Bar Mini and Kinder Pingui Chocolate Slices Caramel do not contain any of the two additives.
Ferrero explains on its website: “kinder uses shellac and gum arabic in small quantities in kinder chocolate vouchers.” – This is also stated on the product page .
The Ehrmann orchard varieties listed ( HERE , HERE , HERE ) contain coloring plant concentrates; there is no reference to E120 or E904 here.
Chupa Chups “Do You Love me” also uses vegetable dyes (beetroot, paprika and turmeric). The addition of E120 or E904 cannot be confirmed here.
Conclusion

The information on the sharepic and also in the screenshot of the article on this topic is misleading. On the one hand, the beetles shown in the sharepic have nothing to do with the additives E120 or E904. On the other hand, these are just “products” of insects and not the whole insects in one piece. As for the carmine, the scale insects are boiled, dried and crushed. Therefore a no-go for vegans.
The information about which foods contain E120 real carmine or E904 shellac is only partially correct.
Source:
Additives Museum – E120 , codecheck.info , Additives Museum – E904 , hna.de , Ferrero
Also read our other fact checks:
University of Innsbruck and the fake toilet signs
An angel in the clouds?
The “Look there!” videos on TikTok! A misleading graphic trivializes deaths caused by climate change
Note: This content reflects the current state of affairs at the time of publication
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The reproduction of individual images, screenshots, embeds or video sequences serves to discuss the topic.

