An curved arrow pointing right. Cochineals are tiny bugs that live on prickly pear cactuses. The acid in their guts makes a red dye used in textiles, cosmetics, and foods like M&Ms and Yoplait yogurt.

Narrator: No one likes finding bugs in their food ... where they suck the juice from prickly pear cactuses. Nancy Greig: And if you squish them, they are bright red inside and kind of a purply ...

Prickly pear, a fruit derived from the cactus plant, is gaining popularity in culinary and health circles due to its u ...

Just a few bugs won’t do it: Nearly 70,000 insects are just enough to make one pound of dye. The insects might appear whitish-grey on the outside, but inside their bodies are a deep purpley-red.

JIM WEST/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY The insects are dried and then crushed to produce the red colouring The bugs, which are about 5mm or 0.2 inches long, are brushed off the pads of prickly pear cacti.