- Field Day |
- Buildings Alive |
- Visions |
- CLGBT |
- Green Community |
- Fun & Free S#!T |
- Crossword |
- CL Space |
Monday, January 26, 2009
Many products with high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) found to contain mercury
Posted by Brian Ries on Mon, Jan 26, 2009 at 10:02 PM
A recent study published by the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy found that many popular food products containing high fructose corn syrup contain detectable levels of mercury. The list of products includes staples like Smucker's strawberry jelly, Hershey's chocolate syrup and blueberry Pop Tarts. The researchers tested 55 products and found that 36% contained enough mercury to be detected in the lab.
Why? Well, that gets a lot more complicated. Bear with me after the jump, and I'll try to sum up.
Some manufacturers of HFCS use mercury-grade caustic soda in the production process, which comes from outdated chlorine plants. Many have upgraded their technology, some have not. Mercury in this caustic soda finds its way into the final HFCS product, which then makes its way into your food.
You can blame the food manufacturers for not getting better provenance on their HFCS. You can blame the HFCS manufacturers who still use the mercury-tainted chemicals. Or, you can blame the FDA.
In 2005, an FDA investigator discovered the link between mercury-grade caustic soda and detectable mercury in commercial HFCS. Since then, the FDA has done nothing to either change or regulate the production of HFCS to remove mercury, or inform consumers about the risks.
Truth is, it's difficult to determine how damaging the mercury found in these products could be. The study makes a big leap to estimate that someone who ingests 50 grams of HFCS a day (the USDA-generated average) could be taking in up to 28.5ug of total mercury per day. That's a tad higher than the EPA's maximum recommended intake of 5.5ug per day for women of child-bearing age.
Of course, that number was set in relation to the methyl mercury found in fish. This HFCS mercury could be entirely different, according to the IATP study, for good or ill.
So, should you stop eating peanut butter and jelly, or refrain from dousing your ice cream in processed chocolate sauce. Nah, but for a variety of reasons that go much farther afield than this study, you should start reading labels and reduce your consumption of HFCS.
For more information, read the entire IATP study -- it's written for the layman, so you'll be able to follow it. Then take the time to write your Senator or Representative and ask for something to be done about it.
Comments (4)
Showing 1-4 of 4
This is further proof that processed foods will be the death of us all. I'm incredibly guilty of indulging in these things, simply because they are prevalent and convenient. I find it funny that as fast as we advance, as a country and as a specials, when it comes to medicine and ways to take care of ourselves, we're just as quickly eroding our health through the processing of unhealthy foods.
like
dislike
If the mercury in vaccines can possibly cause autism, can the mercury in HFCS? I have frequently read that certain fish contains mercury and consumption of such should be limited, especially by pregnant women, then should HFCS have the same warning? If not, why not? Is the mercury in HFCS different? What level of exposure is safe? Does the safe level depend on age, gender, weight? Who determines the safe level? We avoid HFCS here at my home. I can think of only 2 products in the home that have it. This article only leads me to believe that we must totally eliminate HFCS from our home.
Thanks for covering this! I work on Oceana's Campaign to Stop Seafood Contamination, which has been working since 2005 to get the chlor-alkali industry, which produces the chemicals purported to contaminate HFCS, to go mercury-free. Since then, 5 of the 9 plants that were using outdated technology at that time have announced plans to voluntarily stop using mercury. To email the companies that own the remaining four plants and ask them to switch to modern technology, go to http://takeaction.oceana.org/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=11215 In the last couple of sessions of Congress, we have worked with then-Senator Obama to introduce legislation that would ban mercury in chlor-alkali production by 2012. We will be working to make sure the legislation passes this year!
The Corn industry and others claim that they are using new technology for NaOH and HCl production. The fact is that there are still plenty of Mercury Cell Chlor-Alkali plants in and outside of the US. We know all to well that materials are sourced worldwide at the cheapest prices available. Based on recent Wall Street revelations, I wonder how much of the chemical trading is done on a don't ask don't tell basis. How many times do we have to get burned before we study reported problems in detail? If it looks like a duck and acts like a duck .... For those of us that question industry claims of no mercury in HFCS or other products, they then state that mg concentrations are so low that you would have to drink a 55 gal drum of soda for any ill effects. Due diligence is what is needed and that will not come from the very politically astute Corn Lobby. These (2) studies are real and will be peer reviewed and duplicated to prove their validity. The American Food Industry does not have a "Farm to Fork" food certification as other countries have. Their ability to resist such controls has placed us at risk to multiple tainted food products on an all too regular basis.
Latest in Daily Loaf
-
V.M. Ybor neighbood to City Council: We don't want Trinity Cafe to relocate here
Dozens came out to protest the facility coming into their neighborhood.
-
USF held hostage by legislative terrorism
What's JD Alexander want? Simple. A new, taxpayer-funded university in Lakeland that he can take credit for and potentially lead.
-
Mitch Perry Report 2.16.12 - Iorio calls out J.D. Alexander
- More »
Author Archives
-
Tomes for all tastes
It's not all doom and gloom for food publishers this year.
-
PDQ and BGR: Two new eateries recall the early days of fast food 1
Back to basics
- More »
Top Commenters
