End Mercury Contamination of High Fructose Corn Syruo

American consumers have been concerned about high fructose corn syrup and their potential link to health problems like diabetes and obesity for years. However, a recent study published in the journal Environmental Health has raised cause for concern for another reason-the link between high fructose corn syrup and mercury.

How would mercury get into high fructose corn syrup? In making high fructose corn syrup(HFCS), caustic soda is used to separate corn starch from the corn kernel. Apparently most caustic soda for years has been produced in industrial chlorine (chlor-alkali) plants, where it can be contaminated with mercury that it passes on to the HFCS.

In a recent study, 30\% of products containing HFCS tested positive for mercury including: dairy beverages, soft drinks, salad dressings, barbecue sauces, flavored syrups and jams. These were well-known brands with products that are often ate by children, a group most susceptible to the dangers of mercury.

We the American consumers are asking the FDA for more testing to see if other food items contain mercury and to see if HFCS is the only source of the mercury contamination in the food.

We are asking Congress to:
1. Phase out mercury cell technology. Other countries, including Japan, have already banned the mercury cell chlor-alkali process. In 2007, then-Senator Barack Obama sponsored S. 1818, the Missing Mercury in Manufacturing Monitoring and Mitigation Act.35 If passed, the legislation
would phase out the remaining mercury cells in use in the U.S. by January 2012.
2. Ban the use of mercury-grade ingredients in food and beverages. The FDA should ban mercury-grade caustic soda for food uses, given non-mercury alternatives. Pending that,any food containing HFCS ought to be labeled so as to identify whether the HFCS was manufactured using mercury-grade ingredients.
3. In light of its mercury contamination, the FDA should revisit its on-again, off-again approval of HFCS as natural and Generally Recognized As Safe (GRAS). According to a 1997 FDA statement, the proponent of an exemption from the definition of a food additive has the burden of proving that the use of the substance is generally recognized as safe. HFCS
manufacturers should be required to have their products independently and publicly tested for mercury to assess potential human exposure levels.

In the meantime we have encouraged ALL consumers to avoid foods that have HFCS in its ingredients.

Please educate yourself about this problem by going to the following sources.

Not So Sweet: Missing Mercury and High Fructose Corn Syrup by David Wallinga, M.D., Janelle Sorensen, Pooja Mottl, Brian Yablon, M.D. January 2009
http://www.healthobservatory.org/library.cfm?refid=105026

http://www.iatp.org/ Institute for Agriculture and Food Policy