FDA Moves to Extend Brominated Vegetable Oil Ban Beyond (BVO) California

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The rule allowing the use of brominated vegetable oil (BVO) in food is about to be revoked by the Food and Drug Administration of the United States of America. 

Following BVO’s inclusion on a list of ingredients that California recently outlawed, action was taken. 

After the discovery of potential negative health effects in humans from studies done in partnership with the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the FDA came to the conclusion that the intended use of brominated vegetable oil in food is no longer deemed safe.  

There are up to seventy sports drinks, sodas, and other foods that contain brominated vegetable oil. 

It is said that the substance facilitates the mixing of liquids. It inhibits the disintegration and aeration of citrus flavorings into the drink.

Brominated vegetable oil was recently outlawed in the state of California with legislation set to take effect in 2027. 

BVO is already prohibited in many other countries, such as India, Japan, as well as countries in the European Union.

However, the FDA has taken its time persuading. The ingredient was deemed by the agency to be generally recognized as safe (GRAS) in the 1950s; this official classification was granted to products that have either undergone suitable testing or, in the case of ingredients that were widely used before 1958, don’t seem to be harmful.

The FDA overturned BVO’s GRAS classification and temporarily restricted its use to relatively low levels of no more than 15 parts per million in drinks with citrus flavors in response to concerns raised about the substance’s potential toxicity in the ensuing decade.

Brominated Vegetable Oil Linked to Heart, Behavioral Problems

FDA-Moves-To-Extend-Brominated-Vegetable-Oil-Ban-Beyond-BVO-California
The rule allowing the use of brominated vegetable oil (BVO) in food is about to be revoked by the Food and Drug Administration of the United States of America.

Peer-reviewed research on rats has connected BVO to neurological disorders, thyroid, heart, along with liver problems, as well as behavioral, developmental, as well as reproductive problems, according to Consumer Reports. 

The use of BVO in food is also prohibited by the European Union.

Beginning in 2027, food sold in California will be prohibited from containing BVO, Red Dye 3, potassium bromate, as well as propylparaben due to a recent law.

On the basis of risk, science, and regulatory authority, the FDA claims to prioritize reviewing chemicals found in food. 

The FDA adds, “Our proposal to revoke the FDA’s food additive authorization for BVO is now supported by conclusive scientific evidence that our research in partnership with the NIH has produced.” 

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