Benzene,in Soft Drinks

In 2006, the United Kingdom <a title="Food Standards Agency" href="/wiki/Food_Standards_Agency">Food Standards Agency</a> published the results of its survey of benzene levels in soft drinks,<a href="#cite_note-46">[46]</a> which tested 150 products and found that four contained benzene levels above the <a title="World Health Organization" href="/wiki/World_Health_Organization">World Health Organization</a> (WHO) guidelines for drinking water.

The United States <a title="Food and Drug Administration" href="/wiki/Food_and_Drug_Administration">Food and Drug Administration</a> released its own test results of several soft drinks containing benzoates and ascorbic or erythorbic acid. Five tested drinks contained benzene levels above the <a title="United States Environmental Protection Agency" href="/wiki/United_States_Environmental_Protection_Agency">Environmental Protection Agency's</a> recommended standard of 5 <a class="mw-redirect" title="Parts per billion" href="/wiki/Parts_per_billion">ppb</a>.

The Environmental Working Group<a href="#cite_note-47">[47]</a> has uncovered additional FDA test results that showed the following results: Of 24 samples of diet soda tested between 1995 and 2001 for the presence of benzene, 19 (79%) had amounts of benzene in excess of the federal tap water standard of 5 ppb. Average benzene levels were 19 ppb, about four times tap water standard.

One sample contained 55 ppb of benzene, 11 fold tap water standards. Despite these findings, as of 2006, the FDA stated its belief that "the levels of benzene found in soft drinks and other beverages to date do not pose a safety concern for consumers".<a href="#cite_note-48">[48]</a>