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Morning Start: Vanilla flavouring contains goo from beaver butts

Your morning start for Friday, May 7, 2021
25093066_web1_210507-KCN-Morning-Start_1
(Pixabay photo)

Good morning and happy Friday to all! Showers are in the forecast across the board today, but expect more sun than clouds this weekend.

Fun Fact: Vanilla flavouring contains goo from beaver butts

There’s a good chance that the vanilla flavouring in your baked goods could contain the anal excretions of beavers, according to a 2013 article published in National Geographic.

This anal “goo” is called castoreum, a substance from the castor sacs of mature beavers, which are located between the pelvis and the base of the tail. The brown slime is often a combination of castor gland secretions, anal gland secretions and urine.

Anal secretions typically stink, but this goo is a product of the beaver’s unique diet of leaves and bark. So instead of smelling gross, the article states that “castoreum has a musky, vanilla scent, which is why food scientists like to incorporate it in recipes.”

Not to worry, however — the article states that the “U.S. Food and Drug Administration lists castoreum as a ‘generally regarded as safe’ additive, and manufacturers have been using it extensively in perfumes and foods for at least 80 years.” The annual consumption of the substance is rather small — only about 292 pounds yearly.

Weather forecast from Environment Canada:

In Kelowna:

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In Penticton:

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In Revelstoke:

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In Salmon Arm:

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In Vernon:

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In case you missed it:

A Kelowna chef is slated to be featured on an episode of the Food Network’s Fire Masters — for a second time.

James Holmes, head chef of Bernard Avenue restaurants Salt & Brick and Jack’s on Bernard, will go head-to-head with other esteemed chefs on the competition-based show.

“Kelowna’s just on fire right now for being on the Food Network,” he told the Capital News.

Read the full story here.

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That’s all for today. Everyone, have a great day!


@aaron_hemens
aaron.hemens@kelownacapnews.com

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