Despite all the wonders of modern science, logistical knowledge, and food regulations, something always manages to slip through the cracks. This is why it’s good that many of the unfortunate folks in this list documented their experience, so we all get a reminder of what the world would be like without some decent food regulations.

Of course, restaurants and food producers can’t exactly be trusted with keeping everything nice and clean, this is why most nations have agencies dedicated to regulating the things we eat. Even worse, companies will make completely untrue statements about their products, so it’s helpful to have a way to hold them accountable. 

Having bugs in your food is unfortunate and pretty disgusting, but the things we can’t see can often be just as bad. For example, radioactive sheep. If you haven’t ever encountered a radioactive sheep, congratulations, you probably have your own government’s food safety regulator to thank. For example, the Food Standards Agency of the UK only lifted some restrictions on sheep trade in 2012 that had been in place since the 1986 Chornobyl catastrophe. 

The US, for example, maintains the National Chicken Council, the National Pork Board, and the National Turkey Federation, all of which picked different nouns to follow the foodstuff they regulate for some reason. Jokes aside, these non-profits work to make sure meat and other products from these specific animals are clean and not dangerous for consumption. 

If these names seem a bit silly to you, just remember that they are still improvements, for example, the aforementioned National Chicken Council (the NCC) was once the National Broiler Council until 1999. The bad boy of the bunch, the National Pork Board, has gotten into some hot water for funneling money into the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) to limit lobbying. 

However, smaller stores, bodegas, and eateries often bend rules in all sorts of ways or simply ignore proper cleanliness guidelines. Without regular inspections as well as whistleblowers from the public, it’s easy to see how any takeaway or ready-to-eat meal should be viewed with the utmost suspicion. 

Of course, most people are still wholeheartedly opposed to the idea of consuming insects, particularly if they just wandered into the dish. However, there are parts of the world where everything from silkworms to crickets are normal things to eat. Freeze-drying technology has allowed some of these “delicacies” to be available worldwide, so you be the judge. 

Much of the opposition towards eating insects can come from examples like the images in this list. Maggots and other sorts of insects in our food are generally indicators of poor sanitary conditions and possibly spoiled food. It’s hard to imagine eating something that your brain thinks is directly related to rotten foodstuffs. 

In much of the West, there are still some significant regulatory limitations around eating insects. Even when they are classified as a novel food, i.e. an ingredient that does not have a long history of consumption, there are often regulations around how they can be prepared and stored. In most cases, like, for example, with the house crickets, the requirement is that it must be freeze-dried. 

We can’t just blame insects, in some cases, it’s humans behind a pan or deep-fat fryer that are the cause of all the misery. Despite multiple generations of knowledge, some establishments still don’t make sure to properly cook their meat. On the flip side, some parents are so deathly afraid of undercooked meat that their children only taste pork and beef that hasn’t been overcooked later in life. 

The moral of all of this is that it’s best to know where your food and beverages come from and to always look before biting. If this wasn’t enough cursed food for you, Bored Panda has got you covered, check out our other article on the Cursed Foodposting Facebook group. It features horrible recipes, cooking fails and more bugs in places where they shouldn’t be.