Center for Food Safety Asks FDA for Stronger Protections from Arsenic

In response to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s request for comments
on its “Draft Guidance for Industry on Arsenic in Apple Juice: Action Level,”
the Center for Food Safety (CFS) has asked the agency to “limit the public’s
exposure to arsenic through a new regulatory strategy that recognizes the
prevalence of arsenic in the food supply.” Stating that although individual
foods containing arsenic may be safe to eat in moderation, CFS maintains
that they are often consumed in combination, thereby presenting a risk of
“cumulative arsenic exposure” that could reach dangerous levels. Calling FDA’s
draft guidance “insufficient” to address these health hazards, CFS’s November
12, 2013, letter to FDA asks for the agency to regulate based on “cumulative
arsenic exposure” rather than through product specific levels.

According to CFS, FDA “must do more” to adequately protect public health.
To that end, CFS suggests that, because arsenic is present in a variety of foods
and through the environment, FDA act through regulation rather than a
nonbinding “action level.” The advocacy group also stated that “given arsenic’s well-documented prevalence in our food supply, FDA should take into account the multiple sources of arsenic to which consumers may be exposed, and set enforcement standards based on cumulative arsenic exposure accordingly.” Lastly, CFS said that “regardless of the means by which FDA sets arsenic standards for apple juice, it should strictly and strongly enforce them.”