cochineal

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cochineal A dye (cochinealin or carminic acid, C22H20O13) plus a wax and a fat, all three of which have commercial uses, obtained from the dried bodies of female Dactylopius coccus (family Coccidae), hemipteran insects which feed on cacti, are native to Mexico and Peru, and are cultivated in parts of Central America, southern Europe, and N. Africa.

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