http://www.telegraph.co.uk/foodanddrink/foodanddrinknews/9134453/Coke-and-Pepsi-to-change-formula.html
Coke and Pepsi to change formula Coca-Cola and Pepsi are changing their secret formulas in the United States to avoid having to display a warning that they contain cancer-causing chemicals. By Rosa Prince, New York 5:16PM GMT 09 Mar 2012 29 Comments The state of California now requires that the packaging of food and drink with the additive 4-methylimidazole (4-MI) be clearly labelled with a cancer warning. To comply with the new law, which was passed following a campaign by consumer rights groups, the two cola firms are switching the type of caramel they use to give the drinks their distinctive brown colour. Although the change was necessary only in California, the firms will both alter their recipes nationally to avoid complicating the manufacturing process. The Coke formula will remain the same in Britain, as the drink complies fully with European safety laws. PepsiCo did not comment on whether or not it would maintain its current recipe outside of America. The firms, which between them occupy 90 per cent of the beverage market in the US, deny that the additive is cancer forming. Tests have shown that 4-MI can lead to increased tumours in animals, but no reports have been detected in humans. A spokesman for Coca-Cola, which sells 1.7 billion servings a year worldwide, said: "The company has made the decision to ask its caramel suppliers to make the necessary manufacturing process modification, to meet the specific Californian legislation. Those modifications will not change our product. "Caramel is a perfectly safe ingredient and this has been recognised by all European food safety authorities. "The caramel colour in all of our ingredients has been, is and always will be safe. That is a fact." The exact formula of the Coca Cola recipe is a closely guarded secret and is kept under lock and key at the firm's headquarters in Atlanta. Doug Karas, a spokesman for the Federal Drug Agency, said: 'It is important to understand that a consumer would have to consume well over a thousand cans of soda a day to reach the doses administered in the studies that have shown links to cancer in rodents." a.. Share: inShare4 Food and Drink News a.. News » b.. World News » c.. North America » d.. USA » e.. Retail and Consumer » In Food and Drink News A piece of cake Pancake Day 2012 Painting with beer: in pictures Hello Kitty restaurant Alcoholic artworks: in close-up [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
