Andrea McCreery of the Roseville and Rocklin Today discussed possible Prop 65 warnings to be added to some potato products. Here is a snippet:
“I estimate that acrylamide causes several thousand cancers per year in Americans,” said Clark University research professor Dale Hattis. Hattis, an expert in risk analysis, based his estimate on standard EPA projections of risks from animal studies and limited sampling of acrylamide levels in Swedish and American foods.
Acrylamide forms as a result of unknown chemical reactions during high-temperature baking or frying. Raw or even boiled potatoes test negative for the chemical. CSPI today urged the FDA to inform the public of the risks from acrylamide in different foods, and to work with industry and academia to understand how acrylamide is formed and how to prevent its formation.
“There has long been reason for Americans to eat less greasy French fries and snack chips,” Jacobson said. “Acrylamide is yet another reason to eat less of those foods.”
A California attorney has formally demanded that McDonald’s and Burger King place a cancer warning on their French fries, as required by the state’s Proposition 65. Burger King faces a legal deadline of late June and McDonald’s of early July to respond.
The World Health Organization (WHO) held a three-day closed meeting in Geneva with 23 scientific experts specializing in carcinogenicity, toxicology, food technology, biochemistry and analytical chemistry convened to discuss the health ramifications of the acrylamide discovery, which has since been confirmed by the British, Swiss, and Norwegian governments.
For the full article, see: Carcinogen in Snack Chips and French Fries
