BEAVERS anal secretions smell similar to vanilla and can be used in baked goods and sweets, according to the Swedish National Food Agency.

Rumours that vanilla aroma can be sourced from beavers’ behinds, in the form of castoreum, have been circulating on the internet, prompting the agency to confirm the ingredient’s provenance, the Local reports.

"Natural aromas can be extracts from plants, fungi, and in some cases animals. The labelling provisions do not require that the kind of flavour is indicated, with the exception of coffee and quinine," Ulla Beckman Sundh at the agency said.

Vanilla flavour comes not only from the vanilla bean but also from conifer trees or the anal passage of a beaver. The beaver generates the scent to mark its territory. Ms Beckman Sundh pointed out that as the beaver is not bred for its secretions, it is unlikely to be the common source of food flavouring.

As well as in food flavouring, castoreum is used in perfume manufacture and for medicinal purposes. It is included as a note in many classic perfumes, including Lancome Caractere, Givenchy III and Shalimar. The beaver population of Sweden was wiped out in the 19th century due to castoreum’s popularity in natural medicines but later built back up with beavers from Norway.

In the United States, castoreum is often referenced simply as a "natural flavouring" in products' lists of ingredients.