The supermarket chain Walmart announced on Friday that 9,535 cases of Great Value apple juice are being recalled from its various stores in 25 states, including Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia.
The reason for this is that These drinks contained high levels of arsenica toxic component that can be fatal to humans. In particular, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) claimed that the apple juices contained arsenic levels of 13.2 parts per billiona value above the recommended rate of 10 parts per billion.
It was the FDA that issued the order, which it classified as “urgent” on August 15. The manufacturer of Great Value, Florida-based company Refrescohad already recalled the contaminated six-pack of 230 ml bottles. The company made this decision immediately after learning that the product was not suitable for human consumption because the chemical levels exceeded the levels recommended by the industry.
Walmart also removed the product from its shelves. As a spokeswoman for the supermarket chain reported to CNN, Molly Blakemanthey made this decision as soon as they learned that the product was contaminated:
“The health and safety of our customers is always our highest priority. We have removed this product from our affected stores and are working with the supplier to investigate.”
It is not uncommon to find arsenic in consumer productsAccording to the National Institutes of Health, many products contain very low levels of organic and inorganic arsenic and are not harmful to health in principle. It is true that these foods are regularly tested because increased levels of this ingredient can sometimes cause symptoms such as vomiting, abdominal pain, diarrhea, numbness and muscle cramps.
Inorganic arsenic is also a carcinogenic substance For this reason, the FDA is very vigilant about any products that may contain this chemical.
