Starbucks confirms insect product in drink

SEATTLE, March 28 (UPI) -- A vegetarian Web site is lashing out against U.S. coffee chain Starbucks for using ground-up insects in strawberries-and-creme Frappuccinos.

The Web site, thisdishisvegetarian.com, said a vegan barista who works at a Starbucks sent them a picture of the ingredients list for the strawberry sauce used in the beverages and revealed it contained cochineal extract, a food coloring made from the bodies of ground-up insects indigenous to Latin America, The Seattle Times reported Wednesday.

"We are very, very unhappy to now report that the Strawberries & Creme Frappuccino as well as the Strawberry Smoothies (both made with soy milk) are not vegan," the Web site said.

The barista who sent the picture in said the recipe for the formerly vegan beverage must have been changed a few weeks ago.

A spokesman for Starbucks, based in Seattle, confirmed the use of cochineal extract in the beverages.

"The strawberry base for our Strawberries & Crème Frappuccino does contain cochineal extract, a common natural dye that is used in the food industry, and it helps us move away from artificial ingredients," spokesman Jim Olson said.