Food Chemicals
Benzene still present in some beverages
By Sue Mueller
Jan 12, 2008 - 10:43:12 PM

SATURDAY JAN 12, 2008 -- Nine percent of 199 beverages samples tested had exceeded the level of benzene, a cancer-causing agent, which is allowed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), according to a new study by researchers from FDA and EPA.

The EPA limit of benzene for drinking water is 5 parts per billion or ppb (1/1,000,000,000).

Benzene may be contaminated through use of carbon dioxide in carbonated beverages.  This carcinogen can also be formed in beverages with vitamin C and preservatives such as sodium, potassium benzoate present in the beverages during the storage.

In some beverages, vitamin C is added to cater to consumers’ demand for healthy products.  But this vitamin C in some products is the culprit for the contamination of benzene.

The problem got the US beverage industry's attention and most products were reformulated to minimize the formation of benzene in 1990s, according to the study authors.

Seventy one percent of products tested in the study contained no more than 1.1 ppb.  And FDA concluded that at this level, benzene did not pose any risk for consumers.

FDA's Patricia Nyman and colleagues found product formulation, shelf-life, and storage conditions all affected benzene formation in beverages.

The study titled "Survey Results of Benzene in Soft Drinks and Other Beverages by Headspace Gas Chromatography/Mass Spectrometry" was published in a recent issue of ACS' Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.