Green Options

I first heard of Renee Dufault through Mother Jones print magazine back in June. In their “Children of the Corn” article, they named her as the researcher who first uncovered mercury in high fructose corn syrup (HFCS).

Even before this news came out, you may have already cut the HFCS from your family’s diet. But manufacturers are sneaky. There is the corn sweetener in things you wouldn’t even suspect: ketchup, yogurt, salad dressing. Actually, condiments are the biggest culprits when it comes to the mercury/high fructose corn syrup link.

So what did this brilliant researcher receive for her tireless work? Surely, a commendation, right? Nope. Renee Dufault is currently suffering through early retirement in Hawaii.

She was kind enough to discuss her research with me and the implications of mercury in high fructose corn syrup.

There is new evidence that high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) may be a culprit in what is known as Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD), or the disappearance of honeybees.

Colony Collapse Disorder has killed off more than one-third of the bees in the United States.

Beekeepers know that when there isn’t nectar readily available to their hives, as in the winter months, some turn to supplements. Traditionally it was (guess what) honey. But that’s what you want to harvest, so many turn to cheaper substitutions. Cane or beet sugar, mixed with water, was seen as acceptable as long as you removed the part of the comb containing the sugar once bees started producing again. It was important to keep the bees fed so they’d keep brooding and ready to produce honey.

Except it hasn’t only been the occasional sugar-water substitution. We’ve substituted the substitute. People have also turned to high fructose corn syrup.

And once again, it seems our need for convenience and affordability has cost us: a new study shows that a contaminant from heat-exposed HFCS may be killing off the bees.

What do BPA and pregnant women have to do with each other?

A job if you’re willing!!! It pays well BUT here’s the kicker: you must be willing to consume a toxic substance.

Seem a little strange? Just when you think we’re getting somewhere with the BPA issue, we’ve been slapped by a tactic discussed by major corporations in the packaging industry…

According to internal notes that were leaked out by the Washington Post, companies like Coca Cola and Del Monte are seeking out “young pregnant women” to tout the benefits of Bisphenol A or BPA. A meeting took place on May 28th with canned food and beverage industry representatives to combat legislative efforts to restrict the use of BPA.

A recent New York Times article noted that sugar is making a comeback in American diets as an alternative to High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS).

The increased interest in sugar as an alternative to HFCS is attributed partly to HFCS backlash as well as increased PR campaigns and changes in consumer taste.  The change in sugar preference is highlighted by industry figures that note that as recently as 2003 American consumption of sugar was approximately equal to HFCS, but by 2007 the figures had changed and consumers guzzled 44 pounds of sugar compared to only 40 pounds of HFCS

In response to consumer demand, food making giants Pepsi and Pizza Hut have recently rolled out “natural” pizzas and sodas made with “old fashioned” sugar instead of HFCS.  Agro-industrial monolith ConAgra also announced that it would begin production of an HFCS-free line of frozen meals, and Kraft foods declared that it would remove HFCS from its line of salad dressings.  These are just a few examples of large food conglomerates creating new products in response to the recent angst against HFCS.

10 kids ingested windshield wiper fluid at a daycare in Little Rock, AR. The kids, aged 2-7, each had about one ounce of the fluid.  One child had a high blood level of methanol, which can cause blindness.

Mmm.  Delicious florescent drinks. This is what happens when electric blue kids’ beverages look just like poisons.

But no, really: how did this happen?

Ethanol and biodiesel. Corn? Certainly. Soybean? Of course. Sugar cane? In Brazil. Algae? Okay, sure. Why not? But McKee Foods has a new idea, and I can guarantee you aren’t expecting it. The maker of Little Debbie and Sunbelt snacks is far from the only American company to worry about the rising cost of fuel for their trucks or to consider greening their manufacturing plants. But they are currently looking into one of the more innovative possibilities to solve both [...]

As a mom that often blogs about the latest going on in the news in regards to child safety, I was especially saddened by the story on Root today of Hamil R. Harris, a reporter for The Washington Post. His son Issiah is one of the victims of the recent peanut butter salmonella scare. He came very close to to losing his toddler to this horror and ironically because he is so used to being the one covering the news he never imagined that something like this would touch his family.

Tummy aches, fever and diarrhea plagued his son but Harris was skeptical that it could be linked to the salmonella poisoning. The family could not deny something was seriously wrong though after little Isaiah began to fill his little diapers with bloody stools. They saved the diapers so that tests could be run. The culprit they believe was tainted peanut butter crackers.

It’s been a bad couple of weeks for processed foods.  On the heels of the peanut butter recall came the newsmercury-tainted high fructose corn syrup (HFCS).  And this, of course, has reopened the debate over HFCS.

Is it the cause of obesity in America?  Is it really the same as table sugar?  Is it an evil, liquidy villain complete with horns and a tail?  Regardless of how you answer those three questions, from a sustainability perspective alone, we should stop consuming so much HFCS.  Here’s why, and how you can cut down.

There has been a lot of criticism heaved onto China, rightly so, over the use of melamine in foods. Perhaps we should save more of that outrage for closer to home. Three days ago, the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy published their findings in association with the Environmental Health Journal study:

Mercury was found in over a third of processed food products tested, the source of the mercury is contaminated high fructose corn syrup.

One of the researchers, Renee Dufalt, led inquiry into the possibility that HFCS contained mercury while working with the FDA in 2005.

The FDA did nothing to inform consumers about the mercury in the last four years.

Two other very common food additives are also manufactured with mercury cell technology; citric acid and sodium benzoate. These additives have not yet been tested.

After the jump don’t miss the list of names to contact including who is making the tainted HFCS, who was head of the EPA at the time, where you can take action, and what you can do.

With the recent scare of mercury in high fructose corn syrup many parents are worrying about the foods they have been feeding their children. Sweet snacks and treats are large concerns as they often contain a large amount of the potentially dangerous substance. Many parents are now looking for alternative foods they can feel comfortable giving their children. Companies that do not use high fructose corn syrup in their foods, such as Newman’s Own Organics, are becoming even more popular due to this new health risk.

However, parents can go an extra step and choose to make their own treats rather than buy prepackaged foods. Not only is this healthier and often less risky, it also cuts out the negative effects of packaging and transportation. One favorite healthy treat in my house is Black Bean Brownies.

Mercury was found in nearly fifty percent of tested samples of commercial high fructose corn syrup according to an article published in the scientific journal, Environmental Health.

A separate study detected mercury in nearly one third of fifty-five popular brand name foods and beverages where HFCS is the first or second highest labeled ingredient.

According to David Wallinga, M.D., from the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy,

“Mercury is toxic in all its forms.  Given how much high fructose corn syrup is consumed by children, it could be a significant additional source of mercury never before considered.”