toxic chemicals: banned in organics but common in “natural” food production

8/6/2019 Toxic Chemicals: Banned In Organics But Common in Natural Food Production

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Natural Versus OrgaNic series

Toxic Chemicals: Banned InOrganics But Common in

Natural Food Productionso Pon n cm sovn nNon B n M anv

Novmb 2010


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2 Toxic chemicals: Banned in organics BuT common in naTural Food ProducTion

Acknowledgments

The following staff members helped research, write, edit, and support this report:

Charlotte Vallaeys, Farm and Food Policy Analyst, principal author

Mark Kastel, Senior Farm and Food Policy AnalystWill Fantle, Research Director

Lynn Buske, Research Assistant

The following provided professional assistance:

Michana Buchman, copyediting

Tim Hill, report layout/design, timhilldesign.com

Jeremy Vossman, Papertree Design, web design, papertreedesign.com

Gretta Wing Miller and Aarick Beher, lmmakers, downtowndailies.com

The Cornucopia Institute wishes to thank the Compton Foundation and the Forrest & Frances Lattner Foundation for

their support of this project, as well as our other foundation funders, thousands of family farmers, and their urban al-

lies, who support our work with their generous donations.

The Cornucopia Institutes Natural Versus Organic series aims to educate the public about the importance of choos-

ing certied organic foods bearing the USDA Organic seal.

The Cornucopia Institute is dedicated to the ght for economic justice for the family-scale farming community.

Through research, advocacy, and economic development, our goal is to empower farmers both politically and through

marketplace initiatives.

The Cornucopia Institute

P.O. Box 126

Cornucopia, WI 54827

608-625-2042 voice866-861-2214 fax

[email protected]

www.cornucopia.org

Cover design by Tim Hill

Photos by Istockphoto.com

Copyright 2010, The Cornucopia Institute


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The cornucoPia insTiTuTe 3

ConventionalfoodproduCtion depends heavily on the use o toxic chemicals and synthetic inputs in arm-

ing and ood processing that pose potential threats to the environment, public health, and sustainability.

Organic oods provide a government-regulated, third-party-certi-fed reuge rom oods produced and processed with toxins

and potentially dangerous chemicals. Federal standards or

organic oods are created and enorced by the United States

Department o Agriculture, and prohibit the use o syn-

thetic inputs that threaten the environment and/or hu-

man health.

The use o the term natural on ood packages, on the

other hand, is mostly unregulated. Companies reely use

the natural label without any government oversight or

veried commitment to ecological and sae production

practices. In most cases, the company and its marketing

department determine their own denition and meaning

o the term natural.

There are many dierences between USDA-certied organic

oods and natural oods. One example is that ederal law prohibits

companies rom processing organic oods with neurotoxic and polluting petro-

chemicals, including hexane. Foods labeled as natural and containing soy protein are almost universally

processed with hexane.

Summary


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Hexane in the natural soyfoods industry

theprohibitionofhexane in the processing o or-

ganic oods, and its widespread use in non-organic

veggie burgers, meat alternatives, nutrition bars

and other natural oods is a perect example o

the importance o the organic label. A natural

nutrition bar and a certied organic nutrition bar

may look nearly identical, other than price, to a

consumer, but a behind-the-scenes examination o

how they were manuactured, ocusing on the soy

protein ingredients, reveals the importance o the

organic label.

What is hexaNe?Hexane is a byproduct o gasoline rening. Soybean proces-sors use it as a solventa cheap and ecient way o extract-ing oil rom soybeans, a necessary step to making most con-ventional soy oil and protein ingredients.1 Whole soybeansare literally bathed in hexane to separate the soybeans oilrom protein.

Hexane is a neurotoxin, according to the Centers or DiseaseControl (CDC),2 and a hazardous air pollutant, accordingto the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).3

hexaNe residues iN FOOd

The FDA does not set a maximum residue level in soy oodsor hexane, and does not require that ood manuacturerstest or residues. The European Union, on the other hand,has adopted a directive setting maximum limits o solventresidues in oods, including hexane residues in soy ingredi-ents. For deatted soy four used as ingredients in consumeroods, the European Union prohibits levels o hexane resi-dues greater than 10 ppm.4 When The Cornucopia Institutetested samples o soy ingredients or hexane residues, levelsas high as 21 ppm were ound.

a noon n o mn

Hexane poses a health danger to the employees working inood-processing plants because o its neurotoxicity. Work-ers who come in dermal (skin) contact with hexane expe-rience immediate irritation, characterized by erythema andhyperemia, and they develop blisters ater several hours. TheOccupational Saety and Health Administration (OSHA)sets the permissible exposure level at 500 parts per million

(ppm) or workers with eight-hour exposures to hexane. Iexposed through the air to 800 ppm o hexane or 15 min-utes or longer, workers can develop eye and upper respira-

tory tract irritation and will show mild symptoms o narcosis(unconsciousness caused by a chemical substance) i exposedto 1,000 ppm. At high exposure levels, workers will developvertigo, headache, and nausea (ater 10 minutes o exposureto 5,000 ppm).5

Workers who are chronically exposed to hexane levels rang-ing rom 400 to 600 ppm, with occasional exposures o up to2,500 ppm, have developed polyneuropathy, a neurologicaldisorder. In these cases, distal symmetrical muscle weaknessis common, and nerve biopsies show nerve damage. A pub-lished peer-reviewed article in Environmental Health Per-spectives hypothesizes that occupational exposure to hexane

may contribute to the development o Leber hereditary opticneuropathy, a disease that causes loss o vision.6 Chronic ex-posure may also lead to blurred vision, restricted visual eld,and optic nerve atrophy.7

Soy ood consumers may want to consider i they want thesepotential impacts to be part o the oods they eat.

h pov vpo

Hexane is a highly explosive substance, posing a seriousdanger to the people who work in the processing plants thatmake soy protein or natural oods. On August 29, 2003,

two workers died when hexane gas in a Sioux City, Iowa, soy-bean processing plant ignited.8 Explosions caused by hexaneare not uncommon; explosions have also occurred in SouthArica (two dead),9 Italy (our dead),10 and Mexico (200dead, 600 injured).11 None o this is too surprising given thathexane is a highly volatile byproduct o gasoline renement.

Even the truck drivers who are hired to transport hexane areput in danger: In 2001, a tanker truck carrying 4,500 gallonso hexane exploded and burst into fames, not only settingre to two homes, but also critically injuring the truck driverand the driver o another vehicle.12

a zo pon

Hexane is classied as a hazardous air pollutant by the En-vironmental Protection Agency because it contributes to theormation o ground-level ozone (O3), which is the primaryconstituent o smog. While ozone is essential in the upperatmosphere, excess ozone at ground level is a pollutanthazardous to human health and the environment.13

Ground-level ozone orms when oxides o nitrogen, emitted


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primarily by motor vehicles, react in the presence o sunlightwith volatile organic compounds such as hexane. The EPAlists hexane as one o 187 hazardous air pollutants, dened asairborne compounds that cause or may cause cancer or oth-er serious health eects, such as reproductive eects or birthdeects, or adverse environmental and ecological eects.14

Grain processors, including those that process soybeans intosoy protein ingredients or natural nutrition bars and veg-

gie burgers, were responsible or more than two-thirds o allhexane emissions in the United States in 2009, releasing 19million pounds o this hazardous air pollutant.15 Other ma-jor emitters include tire actories and petrochemical plants.Many consumers o natural and organic products would likelygasp i they knew that one o the processing agents used tomanuacture their ood was also used in tire manuacturing.

High levels o surace ozone harm human health by causingrespiratory symptoms. According to the EPA,

Breathing ozone can trigger a variety o health prob-lems including chest pain, coughing, throat irritation,

and congestion. It can worsen bronchitis, emphysema,and asthma. Bad ozone also can reduce lung unctionand infame the linings o the lungs. Repeated exposuremay permanently scar lung tissue.16

Excess ozone damages plant health as well, which leads tostunted growth o sensitive crops, including soybeans. A2009 study by NASA estimates that rising surace ozoneconcentrations are causing nearly $2 billion in damages an-nually to U.S. soybean crops.17 By using hexane, a cheap butpolluting solvent, to process soybeans, the soy industry is,ironically, damaging the very crop that sustains it.

A single Archer Daniels Midland (ADM) plant in Decatur,Ill., released nearly a million pounds o hexane in the courseo a year, making it the second-largest single-source emitter

o this toxic air pollutant in the country.18 In the state o Illi-

nois alone, ood processors ADM, Cargill, Bunge, and others

release almost 4 million pounds o hexane yearly.19

Solae, a major supplier o soy protein ingredients ound in

natural veggie burgers, emitted nearly 900,000 pounds o

hexane, as a pollutant, rom its actories in Ohio and Illi-

nois in 2009. Its plant in Bellevue, Ohio, is the nations thir-

teenth-largest emitter o hexane.

These soy processing plants, owned by ADM, Solae and oth-

ers, make soy protein isolate, which nds its way into natu-

ral products aimed at environmentally conscious consumers.

To reduce air pollution and its harmul eects on people and

the planet, companies should reduce their use o hexane.

Companies and brands that are truly committed to sustain-

ability have already shunned the use o hexane in the oods

they produce. Examples include Amys Kitchen and Turtle

Island Foods (Tourky), which produce veggie burgers and

meat alternatives that do not contain hexane-extracted soy

protein, and Natures Path and Nutiva, which produce nutri-tion bars ree o hexane-extracted ingredients.

Other prominent companies, such as Lightlie, Yves Veggie

Cuisine, and Cli Bar, continue to use hexane-extracted soy

ingredients in their products. Consumers should demand that

they adopt cleaner practices and switch to greener sources o

soy protein.

It has been suggested that it is hypocritical o some o these

companies, which are leaders in their market segment, to

tout investments in green energy and other environmentally

sensitive messaging to their consumers, while simultaneouslyunderwriting the use o a petrochemical solvent that dam-

ages the environment.


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How to avoid hexane-processed foods

Natural MarketiNg sPiN(disiNFOrMatiON): agriBusiNess

resPONse tO cONsuMer cONcerNaBOut FOOd tOxiNs

Consumers who email companies to inquire about their useo hexane-extracted soy ingredients should be aware thatthey will not always receive a orthright answer. Beware theollowing misleading answers, which have been sent to in-quiring customers:

Our soy ingredients are not hexane-derived.

As a solvent, hexane is a processing aid and not an ingredientor raw product. No ingredient is derived rom hexanerather, ingredients are processed with hexane. Customer

service representatives have responded to customer inquiriesby stating their ingredients are not hexane-derived, therebyavoiding answering the real question o whether their prod-ucts are hexane-extracted.

[Our company] does not use hexane to process soybeans.

Many ood manuacturers buy soy protein ingredients romlarge corporate suppliers like Archer Daniels Midland (ADM)and Solae, which is a joint venture between agribusiness gi-

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ants Bunge and DuPont. The company that makes and mar-kets the veggie burger or nutrition bar indeed does not usehexane to process soybeans in its own ood processing plants;rather, it buys soy protein ingredients rom companies thatuse hexane to transorm whole soybeans into processed soyingredients.

guide tO aVOidiNg hexaNe-extractedsOythe cOrNucOPia guide

To assist consumers, and wholesale buyers, in making inormedpurchasing decisions and supporting the companies that havecommitted to hexane-ree soy ingredients, The CornucopiaInstitute developed two guides: the Guide to Choosing Non-Hexane Meat Alternatives and the Guide to Choosing Non-Hexane Nutrition Bars [www.cornucopia.org].

The guides are based primarily on inormation acquiredthrough research, surveys and investigations with industryparticipants. Cornucopia sta members contacted compa-

nies that produce and market meat alternatives, includingveggie burgers, and nutrition bars, to better understand theirproduction practices. Every company listed was given theopportunity to share the details o their production processeswith Cornucopia researchers. Products are listed as highlylikely to use hexane only when three criteria are met:

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In many cases, Cornucopia researchers were able to conrm

that many products in the highly likely hexane-extracted

section do indeed use hexane.

Companies that, subsequent to our research, decide to

change their production and sourcing practices to move

away rom using hexane are encouraged to contact The

Cornucopia Institute, and our guide will be quickly updated

to refect these changes.

Certied organic products are listed as processed without

hexane, given that this is a legal requirement or products

carrying the USDA Organic seal.

Both guides aim to be comprehensive by listing as many as

possible o the brands that generally interest organic consum-

ers. However, not all brands are listed. Especially in the nu-

trition bar category, listing all natural/conventional products

would be nearly impossible given the vast number o new bars

on market shelves. Thereore, our guide ocuses on brands

that appeal to organic and environmentally conscientiousconsumers, especially companies that market their brands as

natural or all-natural.

MakiNg iNFOrMed MarketPlacedecisiONsBraNds dOiNg it rightaNd BraNds tO aVOid

Consumersshouldbeaware o products containing hexane-

extracted soy that market themselves under a green image

and appeal to environmentally and health-conscious shop-

pers. Such brands include Yves Veggie Cuisine, Lightlie and

Cli Bars.

Prominent companies that have committed to using clean

soy ingredients include Wildwood, Turtle Island Foods and

Amys Kitchen.

Choose these products containing non-hexane-extracted

sources o protein.


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Conclusion

theuseofhexane in the natural soyoods industry

is widespread. The Cornucopia Institute urges com-

panies that oer soy-based meat alternatives and nu-

trition bars to use soy protein ingredients that were

processed without hexane, preerably organic.

Hexane is a neurotoxin, a hazardous air pollutant,

and a highly explosive danger to worker health and

saety. Its use in producing nutrition bars, veggie

burgers and meat alternatives aimed at environ-

mentally aware and health-conscious consumers is

misleading and disingenuous.

Consumers wishing to avoid hexane-extracted

soy protein should always choose oods with the

USDA Organic sealtheir only guarantee that

their ood was not immersed in a toxic and pollut-

ing chemical solvent.


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References

1 u.s. evt Ptt ay, hz sy: h (Wt, d.c.: u.s. ePa, Ty T wbt,a T wbt, t ap 1992, v 2000, vb t www.p.v/tt/tw/t/.t).

2 ct d ct Pvt (vb t ttp://www..v//tp/v/.)

3 u.s. evt Ptt ay, Ty T ntwk a T Wb st: abt a T (vb tttp://www.p.v/tt/tw/bt.t).

4 at P, itt, F d it ov o Fty Bt, nvb 25, 2006 (vb l-n).

5 ck stt, eynt nw sv, ep rp m cty, 200 d, 600 ij, 1992 (vb l-n).

6 at P, mv, Pyv, Tk Tk ep F cty ij Tw m, Jy 20, 2001 (vb l-n).

7 u.s. opt sty hz of, opt sty ht g -h (Wt, d.c.:usosho, t pt m 10, 2009, vb t www..v/slTc/t/-/t.t).

8 V. c t ., g r: c opt ep t -h ot svt Pptt V F lb hty opt npty? evt ht Pptv 115 (1): 113116, 2007.

9 u.s. opt sty hz of, opt sty ht g -h (Wt, d.c.:usosho, t pt m 10, 2009, vb t www..v/slTc/t/-/t.t).

10 ep u dtv 2009/32/ec ap 23, 2009. of J t ep u l141/3 (6.6.2009).

11 nasa, stt mt hp rv oz d t iptt cp (vb t ttp://www..v/tp/t/t/yb.t).

12 T -t tt Ft t ty l, t t-t gy t ty T.

13 u.s. evt Ptt ay, T r ivty ep, pt (vb t ttp://www.p.v/tp/).

14 at P, ivtt t s cty Pt ep iv, db 6, 2003, (vb l-n).

15 at P, Wt, ep c s l st a, Jy 12, 1999 (vb l-n).

16 u.s. evt Ptt ay, Ty T ntwk a T Wb st: abt a T (vb tttp://www.p.v/tt/tw/bt.t).

17 u.s. evt Ptt ay, T r ivty ep, pt 2009 (vb t ttp://www.p.v/tp/).

18 u.s. evt Ptt ay, oz: g up h, B nby (vb t ttp://www.p.v//qp/p/.t).

19 i. T. mw, T. J. g, s. J. r, a. stt, u.K. ty z pt vt -p . ii. upt t otb 1991, rpt 878 (Pa) (l: W sp lbty, evt T-y etv ay t dptt T ity, 1991). Qt a. rt, d. l. Py, K. nj, aq- ezyt P eb o ett, ezy mb Ty 19:402420, 1996.

20 ttp://www.yvv./bt/.pp. lt nvb 10, 2010.


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P.o. B 126 cp, W 54827 Tel: 608-625-2042 Fax: 866-861-2214

www.onop.o

toxic chemicals: banned in organics but common in “natural” food production

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