California EPA’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) has issued a notice of intent “to list emissions from high-temperature unrefined rapeseed oil as known to the State to cause cancer under the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986” (Prop. 65). The proposal is based on the 2010 cancer identification by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) for “emissions created by frying food in unrefined rapeseed oil [commonly known as canola oil] heated past its boiling point.” IARC apparently found that these emissions “cause increased incidence of malignant tumors in female rats and combined malignant and benign tumors in both sexes of the mouse.” Comments are requested by December 16, 2013. See OEHHA News Release, November 15, 2013.
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Tufts University researchers who recently published a study in Environmental Health Perspectives linking bisphenol A (BPA) to mammary gland cancer in rats have walked back their claims after Forbes reported that the statistical data cited in the results “clearly showed BPA had no effects and did not cause cancer.” Nicole Acevedo, et al., “Perinatally Administered Bisphenol A as a Potential Mammary Gland Carcinogen in Rats,” Environmental Health Perspectives, September 2013. When first published ahead of print, the study in question apparently concluded that “developmental exposure to environmentally relevant levels of BPA during gestation and lactation induces mammary gland neoplasms in the absence of any additional carcinogenic treatment.” The researchers also noted that human-relevant doses of BPA “led to the induction of malignant mammary gland tumors and other lesions in adult female rats.” But Forbes, after consulting with experts at the Bioinformatics at the National Institute of Statistical Science, argued that the…
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has issued guidance principles for conducting two-year whole food studies “to assess the risk of cancer and/or toxicity from the long-term consumption of such foods by humans.” Acting at the behest of the European Commission, EFSA relied on testing guidance (TG) 453 from the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development in addition to considering the views of member state experts consulted through the Scientific Network for the Risk Assessment of GMOs. The agency has cautioned, however, that testing individual chemicals in animal models “may result in adverse effects caused by dietary imbalance rather than any potential toxicity of the whole food itself,” urging researchers to carefully design studies to avoid this outcome and to use a larger number of animals when conducting whole food studies. “[I]t is essential that scientists implementing its guiding principles should define clear and specific objectives before starting a two-year…
To settle litigation filed in 2007 by environmental and union interests, California EPA’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) has agreed to a number of actions that would remove certain steps from the Proposition 65 (Prop. 65) chemical-listing process that would accelerate the listings. Sierra Club v. Brown, No. RG07356881 (Cal. Super. Ct., settlement endorsed July 3, 2013). The agreement will affect OEHHA’s authoritative bodies listings as to specific chemicals and its Carcinogen Identification Committee listings. Not affected by the agreement, and yet to be determined by the court, is the plaintiffs’ motion for judgment on the pleadings requiring OEHHA to list all International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) Group 3 chemicals for which IARC finds sufficient evidence of carcinogenicity in animals. According to a news source, the court will hold a hearing to consider whether to approve the agreement on August 15, 2013. See InsideEPA.com, July 25,…
The Codex Alimentarius has announced new food safety and nutrition standards that strive to “protect the health of consumers worldwide.” The regulations include guidance on preventing and reducing ochratoxin A—a reportedly carcinogenic contaminant—in cocoa, avoiding microbiological contamination of berries, preventing hydrocyanic acid in cassava, and when to label food with ”non-addition of sodium salts.” The commission also seeks to protect consumers against fraud and ensure fair food trade practices for products such as avocados, chanterelles, pomegranates, olives, and fish products. “The standards help buyers and sellers establish contracts based on Codex specifications and make sure that the consumers get from the products what they expect,” explained a news release. The recommendations also include nutrient references for sodium and saturated fat, as well as maximum pesticide residue limits for certain food additives. Meanwhile, Codex celebrated its 50th anniversary at its annual meeting, held in Rome, July 2, 2013. The session was attended by 620…
The U.K. Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has upheld a complaint against a print advertisement by the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) Foundation alleging that meat consumption raises heart disease and cancer risk. According to ASA’s report, the poster under review featured a child smoking a cigar and the following text: “You Wouldn’t Let Your Child Smoke. Like smoking, eating meat increases the risk of heart disease and cancer. Go vegan!” After considering two complaints questioning whether the link between meat consumption and disease risk could be substantiated, ASA concluded that the studies provided by PETA to support its claims failed to show any strong association between general meat consumption and increased risk of heart disease and various cancers. “We considered that because the ad likened the risks associated with eating any kind of meat to the risks of smoking, consumers would understand from the ad that the…
The Cornucopia Institute (CI) has issued a report that questions the safety of food-grade or undegraded carrageenan, “a common food additive extracted from red seaweed.” Titled “Carrageenan: How a ‘Natural’ Food Additive is Making Us Sick,” the report claims that animal studies “have repeatedly shown that food-grade carrageenan causes gastrointestinal inflammation and higher rates of intestinal lesions, ulcerations, and even malignant tumors.” Distinguishing between undegraded and degraded carrageenan—which the report describes as “a potent inflammatory” processed with acid instead of alkali—CI emphasizes that even the food-grade version poses a health risk to consumers who ingest the additive in a wide variety of products, including dairy and dairy alternatives, deli meats, and prepared soups and broths. In particular, the report points to a 2001 literature review published by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences that purportedly warned against “‘the widespread use of carrageenan in the Western diet’ due to evidence…
A recent study based on the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) has allegedly identified a “moderate positive association” between processed meat consumption and mortality due to cardiovascular diseases, cancer and other causes. Sabine Rohrmann, et al., “Meat consumption and mortality – results from the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition,” BMC Medicine, March 2013. Relying on EPIC data from 448,568 healthy adults between ages 35 and 69, researchers reported that consuming more than 160 grams (approximately 5.6 ounces) of processed meat per day was related to moderately higher all-cause mortality. In particular, they estimated “that 3.3 % ... of all deaths could be prevented if all participants had a processed meat consumption” of less than 20 grams (0.7 ounces) per day. The study’s authors noted, however, that unlike similar studies undertaken in the United States, their analysis did not find any association between red meat intake…
California EPA’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) has withdrawn styrene as a potential addition to the list of substances known to the state to cause cancer by means of the Labor Code mechanism. In 2009, a state judge tentatively enjoined its listing after determining that no known evidence supported a finding that styrene is a carcinogen and that its designation as such would likely have a devastating effect on the industry. Widely used in food packaging, styrene plastics are apparently crucial to the transportation and sale of strawberries, raspberries and blueberries, state industries worth more than $1 billion. The court further ruled at the end of 2012 that OEHHA’s reliance on the International Agency for Research on Cancer’s conclusion that styrene is “possibly carcinogenic to human” was insufficient to justify its listing. OEHHA has not reportedly appealed the decision. See InsideEPA.com, February 21, 2013.
California EPA’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) has issued a notice of intent to list styrene as a chemical known to the state to cause cancer under Proposition 65 (Prop. 65), citing the National Toxicology Program’s (NTP’s) finding that styrene is “reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen.” Comments are requested by February 4, 2013. According to the notice, the proposed listing “meets the standard set out in the recent Court of Appeal decision in the Styrene Information and Research Council v. Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (3rd District, Nov. 15, 2012) case because the NTP conclusion is based on sufficient evidence of carcinogenicity in experimental animals.” Often used in food packaging materials, styrene occurs naturally at low levels in certain shrubs and trees. California consumers must be provided with warnings about those chemicals included on the Prop. 65 list. See OEHHA Notice of Intent, January 4, 2013.
