If you buy a lot of bread from the grocery store, you may want to look at what exactly is in it.
Some grocery store breads have been found to have an additive that’s linked to cancer.
A report by the Environmental Working Group, an environmental research and advocacy organization, shows that at least 86 baked goods and common supermarket products contain potassium bromate.
Some of these products include Hormel Foods breakfast sandwiches, Weis Kaiser rolls, and Tastee Choice orange chicken.
Potassium bromate is an additive for flour, as it helps dough rise, gives it color, and makes the dough stronger.
It has also been flagged as a “potential human carcinogen” by the International Agency for Research on Cancer.
This is because when animal testing was done with potassium bromate, it was found that it increased kidney, thyroid, and other cancers in several animals.
It’s uncertain how much potassium bromate a person would need to see negative effects, but there’s an FDA limit of 75 parts per million in food products now. It’s also been banned in the European Union, U.K., and Brazil.
However, many of the companies being called out for using potassium bromate in their products are protesting that the information collected by the EWG is outdated. Joe Perez, senior VP of Goya Foods, one of the companies called out by EWG, said that Goya got rid of potassium bromate in their products long ago.
“However,” he says, “it is possible that some of our old packaging may still state potassium bromate as an ingredient. We have been working with our suppliers to change all of our packaging with the most up to date product information.
Hormel made a similar comment. A representative said the products listed “were discontinued over 18 months ago,” and are no longer on shelves.
While many companies are finding alternatives to potassium bromate, it’s still worth it to check out that ingredients list whenever you shop. Better safe than sorry.
