Crushed beetles in your clothes, food and makeup?

All around the world people are making textiles, clothes, dyed fabrics. Cochineal Beetles are little white parasitic bugs found on cacti mainly in Latin America. When crushed in the cocooned state they explode a red pigment that is used in food, drink, cosmetics, and many other industries including fashion. More commonly known as carmine, this pigment is globally used. This sparks an issue with animal rights activists. They argue that just because they are small creatures that don't verbalise pain, does that give us the right to crush them just to make lipstick? 

I came across two videos this week. One, a woman from Mexico and the other a woman from Peru, both demonstrating the traditional use of these beetles to dye wool or fabrics. María Luis Mendoza de Cruz, Mexico, the wife of acclaimed Master Weaver Fidel Cruz Lazo shows in a workshop the crushing of these dried cocooned cochineal bugs and how adding acid will lighten the red colour, and adding alkaline creates a deep violet or indigo. In Peru, a skilled Quechua woman makes red dye to weave blankets, and shawls, and other clothing items.


Watching these videos was interesting because out in the Western World and First World countries I believe we have more access to other pigment options that don't involve animals so it's like there are fewer excuses to not be ethical. Whereas the question stands - what about Third World countries? These two examples are women using what they have available in their surroundings to create 'natural dye'. The unnamed lady in Peru also uses leaves and natural plants to create other pigments, which would be considered ethical globally. I still have much to learn about ethical practice and natural dye, so I am very undecided as to where I stand on cochineal beetles being used in these countries. I wonder if maybe other natural resources are available to extract red pigment from such as flowers that are plentiful.


I now invite you to see the Western World alternative. Here's a video I found by a fairly underground YouTuber that I keep stumbling across since starting this blog. BillyNou is a big ethical and botanical YouTuber and in this particular video she uses 'Madder' a natural red pigment made from red flower pigment that is mixed with hard water (not softened, add chalk/limescale) at a warm temp - nothing higher than 80 degrees.


Billy tested several different fabrics to see what would and wouldn't take pigment well, on linen, bamboo fabric etc. The final results showed a range from salmon pink to orangey-brown, then finally a win with an earthy red colour on the bamboo fabric treated with tannin (an organic acid found in plants). So in both Maria's video in Mexico and Billy's in England, an acid was applied to deepen the colour. Although the beetle pigment was a very deep rich red in contrast to the autumnal earthy red of the madder powder technique, Billy's was much more ethical.


What are your thoughts on cochineal beetles used in your food clothes and makeup? Did you know how frequently used they are, I didn't!




All videos linked below! :

Cochineal Beetle dye workshop Mexico


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=svrDU8gRx0c

Natural wool dyeing and beetle pigment

https://youtu.be/2k_FJoaOQGA

BillyNou botanical madder dye

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3kYtM_iTuw


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