The Coca-Cola Co. admitted that they alerted the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) about low levels of fungicide in its orange juice products. The alert caused juice prices to rise and brought about the need for the government to test for the fungicidal residue, ABC News reports.
Coca-Cola, which makes the Minute Maid and Simply Orange brands of juice notified the FDA about low levels of the fungicide carbendazim in theirs and their competitor´s orange juice products.
Currently carbendazim is not approved for use on citrus in the United States, but it is used in Brazil, one of the world´s largest exporters of oranges and orange juice.
The Guardian notes that the FDA has not established a maximum residue level for carbendazim in orange juice and has not said what levels of the fungicide raise concerns. But Coca-Cola reported levels of up to 35 parts per billion, far below the European Union´s acceptance level of 200 parts per billion.
Nega Beru, an FDA official, wrote a letter earlier this week telling the Juice Products Association that they will begin testing shipments of orange juice at the border and will detain juice that contains traces of the fungicide, because its use is illegal.
Beru asked that the industry´s suppliers ensure that producers stop using the chemical on its fruit.
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