Health officials will ban a harmful ingredient found in popular sodas, candies, and other snacks.
The FDA said Tuesday it will ban the use of brominated vegetable oil (BVO), an additive containing bromine, which is found in fire retardants.
Small quantities of BVO have been allowed in some citrus-flavored drinks in the US to keep flavors evenly distributed. Sun Drop, made bu Keurig Dr Pepper, is one of the most famous examples that still uses BVO.
The FDA said it had concluded that BVO was not safe for use after the results of studies it conducted, in collaboration with the NIH, found it could cause adverse effects in humans.
The ruling will come into effect on August 2 and will give manufacturers a year to change their recipes or face repercussions.
Sun Drop, Mountain Lightning from Walmart, and drinks from regional grocery store Food Lion all contain brominated vegetable oil, which the FDA has now banned
Brominated vegetable oil is used in drinks, including some Sun Drop sodas
The decision comes after the FDA first proposed to revoke the regulation in November last year after research linked it to headaches, memory loss, impaired balance, and thyroid issues.
BVO has been used since the 1920s, and in the 1950s to 1960s, the FDA considered the use of BVO to be generally recognized as safe (GRAS).
However, the additive lost its GRAS status in the 1970s, with regulators monitoring studies since then to determine whether it poses a risk to human health.
At the time, studies showed that animals that were fed BVO had adverse heart effects, though additional studies resolved those safety concerns.
In 2014, FDA scientists began reassessing BVO after rodent studies suggested repeated and long-term exposure to the chemical could cause neurological issues like memory loss, impaired balance and coordination and headaches.
The animals studied also had high tissue levels of bromine, which posed a danger to thyroid health.
Michael Ashley Schulman, chief investment officer at Running Point Capital Advisors, said: ‘The FDA’s new regulation to not allow BVO as a food additive is a terrific positive in the right direction.’
As per FDA rules, whenever a company was using the ingredient in any product, it was necessary to list it on the label.
Over time, many beverage makers have replaced BVO with an alternative ingredient, according to the FDA. ‘Today, few beverages in the US contain BVO,’ the agency said.
PepsiCo and Coca-Cola have removed BVO from their drinks such as Gatorade and Fanta, respectively.
‘Sun Drop, manufactured by Keurig Dr Pepper, still uses BVO … This is probably the biggest national brand that still uses it,’ said CFRA Research’s Arun Sundaram.
Sun Drop comes in a mixture of lemon, lime, and sweet orange flavors – all of which contain BVO.
However, the company said last year it was planning to remove BVO from its ingredients list.
‘We have been actively reformulating Sun Drop to no longer include this ingredient and will remain compliant with all state and national regulations,’ a spokesperson said.
The citrus flavor also contains yellow 5, which has been banned in countries like the UK because it contains benzidine, a human and animal carcinogen permitted in low doses.
According to the FDA, ingestion of free benzidine raises the cancer risk to just under the ‘concern’ threshold, or one cancer in 1 million people.
On a scale of one to 10, 10 being the worst, consumer watchdog Environmental Working Group (EWG) ranks Sun Drop at 10 due to its use of BVO, yellow 5, and the additive sodium benzoate.
BVO has also been found in Faygo, a Detroit-based brand that sells more than 50 soda flavors in stores across the country. The brand’s Moon Mist flavor scores a nine on EWG’s scale due to containing BVO, potassium benzoate, and the artificial sweetener sucralose.
However, BVO is most commonly found in regional and store brands.
Keurig Dr Pepper did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
