Heavy metals in baby food: Industry fires back at congressional report’s “tone bias and inaccuracies”

08 Feb 2021 --- The US baby food industry has hit back at a report from The Committee on Oversight and Reform that says infant foods are tainted with dangerous levels of toxic heavy metals.

The subcommittee, the main investigative committee in the US House of Representatives, argues that manufacturers knowingly sell baby food containing dangerous levels of arsenic, lead, mercury and cadmium to unsuspecting parents.

This tainting may endanger infant neurological development and long-term brain function. 

“[The sale of tainted food occurs] in spite of internal company test results showing high levels of toxic heavy metal, and without any warning labels whatsoever,” says Raja Krishnamoorthi, chairman of the subcommittee on economic and consumer policy.

The report is based on internal documents and test results from:

• Nurture, which sells Happy Family Organics, including baby food products under the brand name HappyBaby.
• Beech-Nut Nutrition Company.
• Hain Celestial Group, which sells baby food products under the brand name Earth’s Best Organic.
• Gerber, which is owned by Nestlé.

The committee also requested internal documents from Walmart, Campbell and Sprout Organic Foods, but says that the companies “refused to cooperate.”

Speaking to NutritionInsight, many of these companies assert that the report is inaccurate and mischaracterizes the industry. 

A host of recommendations
The subcommittee’s investigation, which commenced in December 2019, found that arsenic, lead and cadmium were present in baby foods made by all responding companies.

Additionally, mercury was found in HappyBaby, which was the only food made by a responding company tested for the metal.

Based on the findings, the subcommittee has made five recommendations:

• Mandatory testing: Baby food manufacturers should be required by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to test their finished products for toxic heavy metals, not just their ingredients.
• Labeling: The FDA should require manufacturers to report levels of toxic heavy metals on food labels.
• Voluntary phase-out of toxic ingredients: Manufacturers should voluntarily find substitutes for ingredients that are high in toxic heavy metals, or phase out products that have high amounts of ingredients that frequently test high in toxic heavy metals, such as rice.
• FDA standards: FDA should set maximum levels of toxic heavy metals permitted in baby foods. One level for each metal should apply across all baby foods. The level should be set to protect babies against the neurological effects of toxic heavy metals.
• Parental vigilance: Parents should avoid baby foods that contain ingredients testing high in toxic heavy metals, such as rice products. Instituting recommendations one through four will give parents the information they need to make informed decisions to protect their babies.

Hain’s “secret” meeting?
The subcommittee’s report also accuses the Trump administration of ignoring a “secret industry presentation” from Hain to federal regulators revealing increased risks of toxic heavy metals in baby foods.

Krishnamoorthi says that consumers “mistakenly believe that these companies would not sell unsafe products.”The slide presentation in question, which was sent to the FDA on August 1, 2019, revealed that corporate policies to test only ingredients, not final products, underrepresent the levels of toxic heavy metals in baby foods.

The subcommittee argues the presentation also made clear that ingredient testing is inadequate and that only final product testing can measure the true danger posed by baby foods. However, the FDA took no new action in response. 

“The report inaccurately characterized a meeting with the FDA. Like any food producer, we meet with regulatory and oversight agencies to refine and update our policies and procedures to ensure the safety of our products,” says a Hain Celestial spokesperson.

Following the meeting, Hain took several steps to reduce the levels of heavy metals in its finished products – including no longer using brown rice in products that are primarily rice-based, changing other ingredients and conducting additional testing of the finished product before shipping.

“Meeting with the FDA did what the regulatory process is supposed to: collaboratively drive improvements that benefit the consumer,” continues the spokesperson.Many companies have developed their own heavy metal standards in light of gaps in FDA regulation.

“Inaccuracies and tone bias”
A spokesperson for Happy Family Organics says that the company was disappointed with the “many inaccuracies, select data usage and tone bias in this report.”

“The report provides little of the relevant and necessary context for this complex topic. It is important to acknowledge that trace amounts of minerals and metals can be found naturally in the environment, including in water and soil,” they state. 

In turn, it is possible that small amounts can be present in wholesome ingredients like leafy greens, grains, fruits and vegetables. Many everyday foods would contain trace amounts of these elements – whether they are prepared at home or sold as packaged food, explains the spokesperson. 

Meanwhile, Gerber emphasizes that its foods are backed by rigorous oversight at all levels of the growing and the production process, and meet local and international regulatory standards.

Beech-Nut also is reassuring parents that its products are safe and nutritious. A spokesperson says the company is also currently reviewing the subcommittee report. 

Cooperation from Walmart and Campbell
Babies and children are most vulnerable to heavy metals’ neurotoxic effects.Walmart and Campbell have also hit back at reports of lacking cooperation. Walmart says that it provided information to the subcommittee nearly a year ago and invited more dialogue on this issue but never received any additional inquiries.

A spokesperson for Campbell says the company responded quickly to the subcommittee’s questions and never refused anything requested of it.

“We are surprised that the committee would suggest that Campbell was less than full partners in this mission. We welcomed the opportunity to work with the committee in 2019 – and continue to do so today.” 

Campbell also says that its testing showed each product was well within levels deemed acceptable by independent authorities.

In March 2020, the FDA revealed that the amount of infant rice cereals that do not surpass its recommendation for inorganic arsenic levels rose to 76 percent in 2018, up from just 26 percent earlier in the decade. 

Meanwhile, a study recently found that half of UK rice contains more arsenic than the European Commission regulations for rice meant for the consumption for infants or young children.

By Katherine Durrell