Urucum is a fruit that comes from the tropical shrub called urucueiro. Two substances, called coloral and bixina, are extracted from its seed. Coloral is one of the few food colorings that is not harmful to human health, and Bixina is used in the cosmetics industry to color its products. Urucum oil is used to make margarine. Indians use urucum coloring to paint their bodies and ceramics.
