More Than Just Beaver Tails, Crazy Eh?

Castoreum is a common ingredient in food. It is often labelled as simply "Natural Flavouring"...usually with raspberry, strawberry or vanilla foods... Castoreum is a fluid that is extracted from a sac located near the anus of the North American and European beaver. Crazy Eh?

When I read this I all of a sudden pictured beavers having their butts massaged by a bunch of farmers. Who was the first person to think of adding beaver butt juice to our food?? does it add to raspberry and strawberry flavouring because beavers eat berries? Did a caveman somewhere or settlers of the north decide the food they were growing just didn't have enough flavour so they'd add beaver butt to it. I bet it started out with some men drinking and daring each other to eat the most disgusting thing they could think of.... When I think of natural flavouring I am picturing them getting it from a strawberry, raspberry or vanilla beans or something other than beaver bodily fluids. I always knew there was a reason I liked chocolate best...I'm not even going to research what's in it. Castoreum.... Crazy Eh?