Benzene in Soft Drinks

It seems that about 15 years ago, an interaction was discovered between several common ingredients in soft drinks that could cause high levels of Benzene (a known carcinogen). The FDA and the soft drink industry planned to keep this quiet and to reformulate their products. Guess what... From Food Production Daily:

FDA names and shames over benzene in soft drinks
Five US soft drinks were found containing the cancer-causing chemical benzene at levels above the legal limit for drinking water, America�s food safety watchdog has announced, sparking calls for more thorough testing.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) demanded reformulation after tests on more than 100 drinks found four contaminated with benzene above the World Health Organisation's (WHO) 10 parts per billion limit for benzene in drinking water.

The offenders were batches of Safeway Select Diet Orange, AquaCal Strawberry Flavored Water, Crystal Light Sunrise Classic Orange and Giant Light Cranberry Juice Cocktail. A fifth drink, Crush Pineapple, had benzene above the US' five parts per billion water limit.

And the source of the benzene?

The suspected source of benzene is a reaction between two common ingredients in drinks: benzoate preservatives and ascorbic acid (vitamin C).

Erythorbic acid and citric acid are also thought to play a similar role to ascorbic acid, and the reaction is enhanced if drinks are exposed to higher temperatures.

And the prior knowledge:

Both the FDA and the US soft drinks association have known this for 15 years, an investigation by BeverageDaily.com found earlier this year.

Top drinks, including those owned by Cadbury Schweppes, were reformulated after private industry testing in late 1990 revealed a problem. No public statement was ever made, with the FDA allowing industry to �get the word out�.

Now, the re-emergence of that problem indicates a communication breakdown in industry and government, although the FDA re-iterated Friday that there was no risk to consumers' health from benzene levels found so far in drinks.

And you can bet that the lawyers are not far behind... From two followup articles at Food Production Daily: Article One:

Kraft sued over benzene in soft drink
Kraft Foods will face lawsuits in three US states over allegations that one of its drinks contained cancer-causing benzene above the legal limit for tap water, BeverageDaily.com has learned, as pressure mounts on drinks makers.

Lawyers have filed class action lawsuits against Kraft Foods in Massachusetts, Florida and reportedly California.

The actions come after the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said it had found batches of Kraft's Crystal Light Sunrise Classic Orange drink contaminated with benzene at more than 14 times America's legal limit for benzene in drinking water. Independent lab tests have also found a Crystal Light drink with benzene above the water limit.

And Article Two:

Coca-Cola, Cadbury added to benzene lawsuits
Coca-Cola and Cadbury Schweppes have joined the list of beverage firms set to be sued in Florida over allegations their drinks contained benzene, 15 years after the industry first pledged to fix the problem.

The Florida lawsuit alleges independent lab tests found Coca-Cola's Fanta Orange Pineapple contaminated with benzene at 4.7 times the five parts per billion limit for benzene in US drinking water.

A Cadbury Crush Pineapple drink is alleged to have contained benzene, a known carcinogen, at nearly 10 times this water limit.

The move by lawyers means that all three of America's top, branded soft drinks firms face class action lawsuits and possible court cases over alleged benzene in some of their drinks.

PepsiCo already faces class action lawsuits in three states � Massachusetts, Florida and California � following similar independent lab tests on its drinks.

The list of companies being sued has turned into a who's who of the US soft drinks industry. Others targeted include Kraft Foods, Ocean Spray Cranberries, Polar Beverages and In Zone Brands.

I am not a big fan of litigation but sheesh -- these people have had 15 years since the issue was first raised. They have product labs and they could have been testing for this...