1. Top 10 reasons to buy organic 1.) Protect future generations - not 2.) Prevent soil erosion -not 3.) Protect water quality -maybe 4.) Save energy – maybe 5.) Keep chemicals off your plate - not 6.) Protect farms worker -maybe 7.) Help small farmers - maybe 8.) Support a true economy – probably not 9.) Promote biodiversity- not 10.) Better quality –relative to what 11. Animal welfare -maybe 12. Sense of control -yes 13. Sense of community -yes In the case of “Big Ag” organic, I would say that 3,4,7,8,11 become “not”. Also covered: Regulation Labeling “Natural”

2. Organic Food, should you join The rebellion ?The rebellion the chicken factory

3. Today’s Class: Additives, Pesticides, and Natural Toxicants MAIN POINTS: What is a natural flavor? What is an “additive”? How are additives treated legally? Sources and types of “toxins” How are “natural toxicants” treated under the law?

4. ADDITIVES There are about 3,000 approved food additives

6. 1958 Amendments to FD&C (Food Drug and Cosmetic) Act “THE ACT” Regulates any substance..which becomes a component of food, *if* not generally recognized as safe (by experts) or in use prior to Jan 1, 1958. GRAS = Generally Recognized as Safe GRAS = Generally Recognized as Safe The Act excludes spices, smoke derivatives GRAS concept, ways to gain GRAS status – Grand-fathered – FDA GRAS-affirmation (Flavors- Flavor Extract Manufacturers Association) – Self-affirmation

7. Other additive requirements Intentional additive must “work” Cannot be deceptive or conceal defects Cannot reduce nutritional value Cannot substitute for Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs) (canning example) Must have method of analysis

8. The FD&C Act also brought us THE DELANY CLAUSE in any amount.” “No additive shall be deemed safe if it is found to induce cancer in humans or animals when ingested in any amount.” Many compounds naturally occurring in food cannot meet this test. Remember furfural in bread? Aflatoxins in peanut butter? DELANY reflects a 1958 understanding of carcinogens

9. Types of Food Additives

10. Antioxidants Lipid oxidation gives rise to rancidity, off flavors, off odors, and free radicals Anything that can be oxidized (Vit E, C) can serve as antioxidant Can also exclude oxygen, use oxygen impermeable packaging. BHA, BHT

11. Preservatives Salt Organic acids – Benzoates – Acetic, Citric, Lactic Sulfur dioxide Nitrite

12. Other additives Flavors, “natural flavor” from yeast Natural flavors are defined (see next slide) Flavor enhancers (MSG), can be “natural” Acidulants (natural or synthetic) Sweeteners (ingredient) Gums, thickeners and stabilizers Surfactants Nutrients (vitamins and minerals) Emulsifiers Enzymes Chelators (EDTA) (Metals accelerate degradative reactions)

13. The definition of natural flavorings & flavors from Title 21, Section 101, part 22 of the Code of Federal Regulations: "The term natural flavor or natural flavoring means the essential oil, oleoresin, essence or extractive, protein hydrolysate, distillate, or any product of roasting, heating or enzymolysis, which contains the flavoring constituents derived from a spice, fruit or fruit juice, vegetable or vegetable juice, edible yeast, herb, bark, bud, root, leaf or similar plant material, meat, seafood, poultry, eggs, dairy products, or fermentation products thereof, whose significant function in food is flavoring rather than nutritional."

14. Toxins in Food Mother nature can be... …well, a real “mother.”

15. “Human intake of nature’s pesticides is about 10,000 times higher than human intake of synthetic pesticides that are rodent carcinogens.” -American Council on Science and Health.

16. Three sources of toxins in food Endogenous toxins (part of the food) Naturally occurring toxins (made naturally on the food) (aflatoxin) Synthetic toxins Risk Assessment = Dose response + Exposure Assessment Dose response: Threshold or no Threshold?

17. Toxicology- Dose response is the big question for synthetic chemicals Risk Assessment = Dose Response + Exposure Assessment Dose response: Threshold or no Threshold? (Relationship to Delany? Toxins v carcinogens ) Dose Response

19. ENDOGENOUS TOXINS Naturally toxic chemicals in plants Hemaggultinins – castor and soy beans “ricin” Cyanogens- cassava, beans Phytoalexins – potato Safarole – sassafras, black pepper Nitrites – celery, dark green vegetables Cyanide – apricot pits

20. “Solely the dose determines that a thing is … a poison” Parcelis, 16 th century (i.e. “The dose makes the poison.”) Myristicin in carrots is a halluncinogen > 400 mg required *Carrots contain 0.6 ug/kg You need to consume ~ 667 kg (> 1,000 pounds) to reach the effective dose *Mutmeg also contains myristicin, and a few tablespoons can get you high (or sick)

21. NATURALLY OCCURING TOXINS Fungal Toxicants OchratoxinCereal grainsKidney Patulin 50 ppb Apple productsKidney Alimentary toxic alukia Cereal grainsBone marrow 80% fatality ZeraralenoneCorn, wheatHyper-estro- genisms Ergot alkaloids- associated with rye, delusions and hallucinations

22. Aflatoxin – corn and peanuts 15 ppb ok (legally)

23. Marine Toxins FUGU FISH One Fish, Two Fish, Blowfish, Blue Fish Homer à manger du Fugu, un poisson mortel, dans un restaurant japonais. Il ne lui reste plus alors que 24 heures à vivre. Saxitoxin – clams, paralytic shell-fish poisoning, red tide Domoic Acid - muscles

24. Bioaccumulation

25. Animal Testing

27. “Animal foods tested on humans”

28. Chemicals in the environment Pesticides – act against insects -Organochlorides – persist (DDT) -Organophosphates – degrade Herbicides – act against weeds Integrated Pest Management Use of Pesticides and Herbicides has decreased 50% since 1980

29. Pesticides 300 active ingredient 10,000 uses 1.2 billion pounds ~ 8 lbs/ person (applied) $20 billion crops destroyed (w/ pesticides) Fungicides prevent aflatoxin Increase yield, decrease crop losses Regulated by EPA, USDA, FDA Many arguments for and against pesticides -impact of genetic engineering

30. Pesticide Testing (is limited) No detectable pesticides in 60% of conventional produce

31. Pesticide Testing (is limited) No detectable pesticides in 60% of conventional produce Pesticides are detected in 40% of produce

32. Pesticide Testing (is limited) No detectable pesticides in 60% of conventional produce Pesticides are detected in 40% of produce In 39%, detection is at less than one- tenth of tolerance level (which has 100- fold safety factor) Only 1 % of produce tested has pesticides in excess of tolerance Wash with warm soapy water

33. Antibiotics and the danger of antibiotic resistance Is agricultural use of antibiotics a significant part of the resistance problem? Antibiotics, 60 years - Bacteria, millions of years

34. Other nasty beasties Carcinogens in smoked foods Pyrolysis products PCBs – chloroacne, headache, numbness

35. “The hypothetical risk posed by food additives is greatly exceeded by the very real risk posed by not eating.” Enjoy your food. -Prof. Don Schaffner, Rutgers University