Food production feeds the planet, but it also carries a hidden, unsavory side. 10 ways you might be munching on microscopic traces of fecal matter without even realizing it. From the salad bowl to the soda fountain, the food supply chain is riddled with tiny contaminants that most of us never think about. Buckle up for a wild, eye‑opening tour of the foods that could be delivering a side‑dish of poop straight to your plate.

10 Ways You Might Unknowingly Consume Fecal Matter

10 Leafy Greens

Leafy greens are typically cultivated with synthetic fertilizers, yet they’re still vulnerable to stray fecal deposits from nearby animals. Research from the Yuma Agricultural Center (YAC) shows that cow manure can boost the odds of E. coli making its way onto crops, while droppings from dogs, rabbits, birds and other critters pose a comparatively lower threat.

Numerous E. coli outbreaks have been linked to leafy greens such as spinach. YAC’s study revealed that contaminated irrigation water can spread the bacteria throughout a field, and even furrow irrigation—though the safest method—doesn’t guarantee protection.

9 Organic Food

Many shoppers pay premium prices for organic produce, hoping to dodge chemicals and pesticides. Ironically, organic crops often face a higher chance of fecal contamination. A 2012 Annals of Internal Medicine study found that 5 % of lettuce samples carried fecal bacteria, and a startling 65 % of organic pork tested positive for E. coli.

Further research from the University of Minnesota reported that 9.7 % of organically grown produce harbored E. coli, compared with just 1.6 % of conventional varieties. The data suggest that “organic” doesn’t automatically mean “clean” when it comes to microbial safety.

8 Candy and Chocolate

Everyone loves the glossy sheen of candy and chocolate, but the sparkle often hides a surprising ingredient: the secretions of the female lac insect. Known as confectioner’s glaze, this resinous coating is derived from the insect’s fecal matter, giving sweets that mirror‑like finish.

While the glaze adds visual appeal and a smooth texture, it also means that a tiny amount of insect excrement makes its way into the treat. So the next time you bite into a shiny chocolate, remember you’re enjoying a tiny taste of bug poop.

7 Spices

Spices turn ordinary dishes into culinary masterpieces, but they also come with a less‑appetizing side note. The FDA permits a certain level of animal contamination in spice blends, acknowledging that rodents, birds and other critters can leave droppings or even whole pellets during processing.

Official FDA guidance notes that “contamination of these products by animals usually results from either gnawing or defilement by excreta.” Whole rodent pellets, bird droppings and other animal bits are routinely found in spice shipments, meaning a pinch of your favorite seasoning could contain a trace of fecal matter.

6 Wheat

Wheat underpins countless baked goods—from bread to pizza crusts. Yet the FDA allows up to 9 mg of rodent pellets per kilogram of wheat, effectively permitting a small amount of rat feces to slip into the grain supply.

This permissible level means that many of the everyday items we enjoy may contain minuscule traces of rodent excrement, all while staying within legal safety margins. So that slice of toast? It could be home to an invisible, tiny rodent snack.

5 Imported Seafood

The United States imports a hefty share of its seafood—from Vietnamese shrimp to Hong Kong tilapia. Although the FDA conducts spot checks on roughly three percent of these shipments, many imported fish are raised on feed that includes pig and goose feces because it’s cheaper than commercial fish food.

Producers claim the fish feed on algae that grow on the waste, but the reality is that the seafood may be swimming in or consuming swine manure. Even if the fish don’t directly ingest the feces, the environment they live in is steeped in it, making the final product a potential carrier of microbial contaminants.

4 Peanut Butter

Peanut butter is a protein‑packed snack that many families adore, but the FDA permits up to five percent of rodent filth—such as feces or hair—to be present in the product. This limit applies to both crunchy and smooth varieties, meaning a spoonful could contain invisible traces of rat droppings.

Because the contaminant level is so low, most consumers never notice a difference, especially in crunchy versions where the texture masks any foreign material. So that jar of peanut butter might be a little more “natural” than you think.

3 Ground Turkey

Ground turkey is often marketed as a lean, healthier alternative to beef, yet a Consumer Reports investigation found that more than half of 257 tested samples were tainted with fecal‑origin bacteria. Specifically, 69 % contained enterococcus and 60 % harbored E. coli.

While thorough cooking can kill these pathogens, the presence of such high contamination rates underscores that even “healthier” meat options aren’t immune to fecal intrusion. Your turkey burger might be a little less pristine than advertised.

2 Soda Fountain Machines

A study in Virginia’s Roanoke Valley discovered coliform bacteria—a tell‑tale sign of fecal contamination—in nearly half of tested soda fountain machines. The EPA even bans coliform in drinking water because it signals possible fecal intrusion.

Results showed 48 % of machines harbored coliform, with 20 % exceeding EPA limits. The contamination likely originates from the plastic tubing inside the dispensers rather than the soda itself, meaning each sip could carry a hidden dose of bacterial waste.

1 Human Feces Steak

A sensational hoax that refuses to die claims a Japanese scientist created a steak from human feces, complete with a taste test and a seal of approval. The story spread across news outlets, many of which reported it as fact.

Closer inspection reveals the YouTube video behind the legend is a fabricated piece, riddled with subtle clues that expose its falsehood. The hoax illustrates how easily bizarre claims can infiltrate public consciousness.

While the notion of purchasing a human‑feces steak remains firmly in the realm of myth, it serves as a stark reminder of how shocking food‑related rumors can capture attention.

Kelly is a freelance writer and the owner of ColoradoSocialSolutions.com, a social media and content management service.

Welcome to a world where ancient poop becomes the ultimate time‑machine. The 10 secrets ancient uncovered in fossilized feces (yes, coprolites) are reshaping how we read history, diet, and disease. These preserved piles of poo hold ten times more DNA than bones and whisper stories about everything from Roman sanitation to Viking gut flora. Grab a seat, keep your nose pinched, and let the stinky saga begin.

10 Rome’s Dirty Secret

Ancient Rome boasted impressive aqueducts and public latrines, yet its citizens were still plagued by a parade of parasites. Cambridge researchers uncovered evidence of whipworm, roundworm, and even a fish tapeworm roaming the intestines of Romans. Ectoparasites such as fleas, lice, and bedbugs were just as common as they were among Vikings and medieval Europeans.

Some Roman hygiene practices may have mitigated infection, but others likely amplified it. Public bath water was changed only sporadically, turning communal tubs into perfect breeding grounds for parasites. Moreover, Romans spread human waste as fertilizer, boosting crop yields while simultaneously seeding fields with intestinal worms. The detection of fish tapeworm DNA points to a love of raw fish and the fermented sauce garum that seasoned every banquet.

9 Cannibals Of Cowboy Wash

Deep within the Pueblo site known as Cowboy Wash in Colorado, archaeologists unearthed ancient feces that contained unmistakable traces of human muscle tissue. For years, the area yielded butchered and boiled bones, but definitive proof of cannibalism had remained elusive—until these coprolites arrived on the scene.

The Hopi and Zuni peoples have fiercely rejected the cannibalism narrative, pointing out that accusations have historically been weaponized to justify genocide. Researchers stress that cannibalism was likely an emergency response to a severe drought spanning 900‑1150 CE, rather than a cultural norm.

One particularly grisly detail emerged: a cannibal appears to have defecated directly into a victim’s fireplace, a symbolic act of ultimate disrespect. While shocking, this act underscores the desperation and brutality that can surface during environmental collapse.

8 Neanderthal Diet

Coprolites recovered from El Salt in southern Spain, dating back roughly 50,000 years, constitute the oldest known human‑type feces. For decades, the prevailing view painted Neanderthals as pure carnivores, but chemical analysis of these specimens revealed a more balanced menu that included vegetables alongside red meat.

Skeptics argue the specimens could belong to large omnivores such as bears, given the lack of DNA confirmation. Nevertheless, researchers point to cholesterol profiles that match human signatures, bolstering the claim that Neanderthals enjoyed a varied diet. The findings also hint that mastery of fire, which emerged around two million years ago, may have driven early humans toward higher meat consumption while still retaining plant intake.

7 Hidden Cargo

The legendary Silk Road is famed for moving silk, spices, and religions across continents. Recent analyses of hygiene sticks recovered from a remote outpost in Xuanquanzhi revealed a hidden cargo: eggs of the Chinese liver fluke, a parasite that thrives in marshy water.

This discovery provides concrete proof that parasites travelled alongside goods, confirming long‑standing speculation that diseases such as anthrax, leprosy, and even the Black Death rode the same routes. In 2013, clusters of Behçet’s disease—a mysterious autoimmune condition—were mapped along the Silk Road, further hinting at disease diffusion. The liver fluke evidence now cements the notion that ancient trade also spread intestinal invaders.

Scientists continue to scour Silk Road sites for additional biological baggage, hoping to map the full spectrum of pathogens that once accompanied caravans across deserts and mountains.

6 Hannibal’s Crossing

Hannibal’s legendary Alpine trek has baffled historians for centuries. In the narrow Col de la Traversette pass near Turin, Italian researchers dug down to sediment layers dating to the Punic Wars and discovered a massive accumulation of horse‑related organic material.

Chemical signatures matched those typical of horse gut contents, while DNA testing identified microbes uniquely associated with equine manure. The churned earth, replete with horse droppings, offers the strongest physical evidence yet that Hannibal’s army—and its 37 war elephants—traversed this exact route to invade Rome.

5 Viking Turd

In 1972, archaeologists at the Jorvik Viking site in England uncovered a colossal human coprolite measuring a staggering 18 cm (7 in). Chemical analysis revealed a diet dominated by meat and grain, while microscopic examination exposed a profusion of Ascaris lumbricoides eggs—a parasite notorious for burrowing through tissue and even emerging from unexpected body openings.

The sheer density of worm eggs suggested the Viking’s intestines were teeming with parasites, painting a vivid portrait of medieval filth. Unfortunately, the prized specimen shattered in 2003 when a display case slipped, leaving only photographs to remind us of the gut‑gritty reality of Viking life.

4 Earliest Americans

Coprolites recovered from Oregon’s Paisley Caves are rewriting the story of the continent’s first inhabitants. Human DNA extracted from these specimens dates back 12,300 years, pushing back settlement timelines by roughly a millennium compared with the classic Clovis‑first model.

Critics initially argued that the DNA could have been contaminated during excavation, and pointed out that the cholesterol profile resembled that of a herbivore rather than a human. However, the original research team replicated their methods with fresh samples, consistently reproducing the human genetic signature.

These findings support a scenario of multiple migration waves, including a plausible coastal route, and suggest that early peoples were more diverse and adaptable than once believed.

3 Crusader Crap

In the ruins of a 12th‑century Cypriot castle built by the Frankish Lusignan dynasty, archaeologists uncovered latrine deposits teeming with whipworm and giant roundworm eggs. The elegant half‑moon latrines, although aesthetically pleasing, proved to be hotspots for intestinal parasites.

While a light parasite load can be a mere nuisance, heavy infestations dramatically increase the risk of malnutrition and disease—especially during sieges or prolonged campaigns when food was scarce. The Crusaders, therefore, faced a silent but deadly enemy lurking in their own restrooms.

2 Mystery Of Vieques Island

Pre‑Columbian Vieques, a tiny island off eastern Puerto Rico, hosted two distinct cultural groups: the Saladoids and the Huecoids. For decades, scholars debated their origins, with the former linked to Venezuela and the latter to the Bolivian Andes.

Analysis of Huecoid coprolites revealed maize residues and a unique yeast used to brew chica, an Andean alcoholic drink, confirming a South‑American connection. In contrast, Saladoid samples lacked maize but contained a parasite that attacks freshwater fish, underscoring divergent subsistence strategies and supporting the notion of two separate migrations.

Both groups ultimately contributed to the genetic and cultural tapestry of the modern Taino peoples, illustrating how diet and disease can illuminate migration patterns.

1 Cold Case

Cangrande della Scala, the powerful Veronese ruler and patron of Dante, died abruptly in 1329 after drinking from a contaminated spring. While contemporary accounts mentioned a sudden illness, rumors of murder swirled for centuries.

When his remains were exhumed in 2004, X‑rays and CT scans revealed arthritis, tuberculosis, and signs of cirrhosis. The real breakthrough came from a fragment of mummified feces found with the skeleton. Chemical analysis detected chamomile, mulberry, and, most damning of all, foxglove—an herb that produces digitalis, a potent cardiac toxin.

Foxglove poisoning produces severe diarrhea, drooling, and seizures, matching the symptoms recorded in historical chronicles. After Cangrande’s death, his successor Mastino II executed the physician, suggesting foul play. Modern researchers now see fecal analysis as a powerful tool for solving ancient mysteries, and they are eager to apply it to other cold cases.

10 Secrets Ancient Insight

From Roman latrines to Viking guts, the 10 secrets ancient hidden in coprolites remind us that even the most humble remnants can rewrite history. Keep your curiosity (and your nose) open for the next poo‑powered revelation.

When it comes to the 10 most expensive pieces of poop ever recorded, the numbers will make you gasp. Feces are typically something we toss away, yet certain specimens have fetched hundreds of thousands—or even millions—of dollars at auction.

10 Ambergris

Ambergris is fecal gold. It’s rare enough that finding a big enough hunk of it can make you an instant millionaire. In 2016, three fishermen from Oman found an 80‑kilogram (176 lb) piece of ambergris valued at $3 million. The same year, a UK couple discovered a 1.57‑kilogram (3.46 lb) lump that sold for $70,000.

Humans have been using ambergris for over a thousand years. Today, it is prized as an essential ingredient in luxury perfume manufacture. Centuries ago, people thought it was hardened sea foam or the excrement of a massive bird. It wasn’t until the 1800s, when whaling ships began hunting sperm whales for their valuable oils, that the true source was identified.

Sailors learned that ambergris is produced by sperm whales. It forms from the beaks and other hard parts of squid and cuttlefish that the whales ingest. Because sperm whales cannot digest these hard parts, they vomit them out. Occasionally, some fragments make their way into the whale’s intestines, where they become encased in ambergris.

The ambergris mass can linger inside the whale for several years until the animal either vomits or poops it out. Some scientists think that especially large lumps can damage the whale’s intestine, potentially killing it. There are also speculations that pygmy and dwarf sperm whales might produce ambergris due to their similar diet.

9 Piero Manzoni’s Feces

Sometime in 1961, Italian artist Piero Manzoni decided to create some strange artwork with his feces. He pooped in 90 cans, sealed them shut, and put them on sale. He called them Merda d’Artista (Artist’s S‑t) and labeled each can “Artist’s S‑t, Freshly Preserved, Produced and Tinned in May 1961.” The price was determined by the cost of the same weight in gold.

Manzoni died in 1963, but his poop sells like hotcakes today. Tate art gallery in London acquired one for £22,350 ($30,000) in 2007. The same year, a second can auctioned for £81,000 ($108,000) in Milan. Another one sold for £182,500 ($242,000) in 2016. By 2017, they were worth around $300,000 and are projected to reach millions of dollars within a few years.

Interestingly, Agostino Bonalumi, who worked with Manzoni at the time he canned his feces, said the cans actually contain plaster and not poop. Bonalumi added that Manzoni only called them canned poop because he wanted to prove that art collectors would buy any expensive item labeled as art, even if it is poop.

These claims could be true, considering that Manzoni had an eccentric habit of creating unusual artworks. He exhibited plain white sheets, boiled eggs, and a balloon as art during his life. He also sealed some papers inside a box and called it a work of art. He added that the sealed box should no longer be considered art the moment the seal is broken.

Bonalumi has dared buyers to open the cans to see if they really contain plaster. However, buyers are not interested in opening their cans over concerns that the value would tank. At least one can was opened in 1989. Its contents were wrapped, however, and the opener of the can did not unwrap them.

8 Elvis Presley

In 2012, light‑blue underwear worn by Elvis Presley went on auction. One account simply mentions that the underwear was stained around the crotch area, while another explicitly states that it was stained with poop. Elvis wore the underwear under a jumpsuit he donned for a 1977 show.

The auction ended with the briefs unsold after several buyers offered to buy it for £5,000, which was £2,000 less than the £7,000 reserve price. The auctioneers had hoped it would sell for £10,000.

Other items owned by Elvis Presley were successfully sold at the same auction. One was a Bible he had used since 1957. Elvis wrote notes in the Bible and underlined statements he found of interest. The Bible sold for £59,000, far above the expected £25,000.

7 Meter‑Long Fossilized Poop

In 2012, an unnamed man dug up a 102‑centimeter‑long (40 in), brownish‑yellow coprolite belonging to an unidentified animal that lived in what is now Toledo, Washington, millions of years ago (between six and 33 million, depending on the source). A coprolite is fossilized fecal matter.

The ancient poop sold at auction for $10,370 in 2014. However, some critics say the coprolite is actually a pseudo‑coprolite. Pseudo‑coprolites are materials that look like dung but are really something else. Critics think this one was made from volcanic ash that entered a swamp and turned into clay.

Skeptics reached this conclusion because the so‑called coprolite did not contain anything that appeared to be digested matter. There was, however, a large amount of siderite, a mineral primarily made of iron. This indicates that it’s just a rock and not a coprolite.

6 Elephant Dung

The dung of elephants living in Thailand’s Golden Triangle is used to make one of the world’s most expensive coffees. The coffee is called Black Ivory and is made with coffee beans picked from the dung of elephants. The Golden Triangle itself is the area where Thailand meets the borders of Laos and Myanmar.

A pound of Black Ivory coffee sold for $500 as of 2012. A cup cost $50. The manufacturer says the coffee has a distinct, non‑bitter taste because the beans have been processed by acids in the stomach of the elephant. Their flavor is also altered by the sugarcane, banana, and whatever else the elephants consume.

A beer was also been made from elephant poop in 2013. It was called Un, Kono Kuro and was bottled by the Japan‑based Sankt Gallen brewery, which marketed it as a chocolate stout, even though it does not contain chocolate but, again, coffee beans picked from the feces of elephants living in the Golden Triangle.

Un, Kono Kuro was quite pricey because the coffee beans are expensive. 35 grams of the elephant‑refined coffee beans cost $100. The elephants produce just 1 kilogram of usable coffee beans for every 33 kilograms they consume. Nevertheless, Un, Kono Kuro sold out within minutes when put up for sale online. Sankt Gallen said they had plans to offer it on tap at their then‑new Tokyo location.

5 Guano

Guano is the excreta of seabirds and bats and is used as fertilizer. It was a big deal in the 19th century, when the United States and other European nations did almost anything to get their hands on it. Guano was so valuable that Peru, a major producer, funded most of its budget with the money it made from exporting it.

The United States was so interested in accessing guano that it passed the Guano Islands Act of 1856. The act allows US citizens to seize unclaimed guano‑rich islands in the name of the United States. The US president can choose to include the island as a part of US territory and even defend it with military force. The law is still on the books and has never been repealed.

Peru and Spain also went to war after Spain seized Peru’s guano‑rich Chincha Islands in 1864. The two‑year‑long Chincha Islands War ended with the defeat of Spain by the combined militaries of Bolivia, Chile, Ecuador, and Peru. Guano was also an indirect cause of the War of the Pacific (1879–1883) between Peru and Chile.

Peru still mines guano today, even though it no longer funds most of its budget with the money it makes from it. Most of the guano is used by local farmers, while a smaller portion is exported abroad as organic fertilizer.

4 Panda Dung

An Shi was a professor at Sichuan University in China. He was also the inventor of a process that allows farmers to use panda feces as fertilizer for their tea plants, for which he was awarded a patent in 2011. An said that tea made from the panda poop‑fertilized plants could prevent cancer. There was a catch, though. He expected a kilogram of the tea to cost $69,000, making it possibly the world’s most expensive tea.

An said the panda dung fertilizer would work because bamboo prevents cancer. Bamboo is the primary diet of pandas. However, pandas only process 30 percent of the bamboo they consume. They pass the remaining 70 percent out of their bodies in their poop. An maintained that their dung will transfer its cancer‑preventing properties to the tea when used as fertilizer.

Scientists were skeptical about An’s claims, though. There is no research to prove that tea grown with panda dung fertilizer can prevent cancer. They also didn’t understand how he arrived at a price for the tea before it was even produced.

3 Civet Cat Poop

Kopi luwak is also one of the world’s most expensive coffees. A cup sold for up to $90 in the US in 2015. In this case, the coffee is made with partially digested coffee beans picked from the feces of the civet cat. The civet cat is not a cat but a close relative of the mongoose.

These days, kopi luwak is made with coffee beans picked from the dung of civet cats reared under inhumane conditions in farms in Indonesia and Philippines. The civets are locked in cages that don’t provide enough room for them to roam around. They are fed with only coffee beans, even though they eat a variety of foods in the wild. The confinement takes its toll on the civets, causing them to behave abnormally. They run around in circles and inflict injuries on themselves.

Most kopi luwak sellers deny knowledge of these claims and insist that their coffee is only made with the poop of wild civets. However, skeptics say that would be impossible because the sellers cannot sustain their businesses with beans picked from the dung of wild civets.

Others say the supposedly smooth taste of kopi luwak is hype and nothing else. Four coffee tasters indicated this during a blind taste test involving six types of coffee, including kopi luwak. The tasters put kopi luwak in fourth place. The first‑place coffee was ten times cheaper than the kopi luwak.

2 Jacu Bird Dung

Jacu bird coffee is yet another expensive coffee made from animal dung. As the name implies, it is made from the poop of the wild jacu bird that lives in Brazil.

Brazilian farmer Henrique Sloper de Araujo invented jacu bird coffee after he noticed jacus from the nearby national park were eating coffee beans in his 740‑acre farm in Pedra Azul. Araujo already knew about kopi luwak and thought he could make something similar from the bird. He tracked the birds and checked their poop for undigested coffee beans.

In 2006, he first released jacu bird coffee. Currently, a kilogram of it costs £700. Araujo says the coffee is among the best in the world because the birds only consume the ripest coffee beans. He added that the birds also eat apricots, truffles, and berries, giving the coffee a distinct nut‑like taste.

1 Lloyds Bank Coprolite

In 1972, construction workers discovered a 20‑centimeter‑long and 5‑centimeter‑wide (8 × 2 in) piece of human excrement while excavating in order to build a new branch of Lloyds Bank in York, England. Historians say the poop was passed by someone living in the Viking‑ruled York sometime in the ninth century.

Historians added that the producer of the feces had intestinal problems and had been unable to poop for several days before dropping this. Tests revealed that he consumed a diet heavy on meat and bread. The poop is valued at $39,000. However, it is not currently for sale and is held at the Jorvic Viking Centre in York.