US stops orange juice imports

By Park Sae-jin Posted : February 2, 2012, 14:08 Updated : February 2, 2012, 14:08
The United States has temporarily halted shipments of imported orange juice from all countries while they are tested, and said it will destroy or ban products containing even low levels from a banned fungicide.

If levels of the chemical, carbendazim, are found to be below trace amounts, the products may be released and sold, according to the Food and Drug Administration. Initial tests on shipments from Canada did not turn up the chemical, the agency said.

The fungicide, linked in studies to higher risk of liver tumors in animals, was found in trace amounts last month in products from Brazil after the Coca Cola Company, which owns the Minute Maid brand, said it notified the FDA that some Brazilian growers had sprayed their trees with the chemical.

Brazil produces almost one in every six glasses of orange juice consumed in the United States, according to one analyst, creating a rapid response by government agencies.

The FDA told Reuters on Wednesday it expects to have initial results of testing as well as information about any juice that is being turned away at the border by the end of this week.

Futures related to the juice industry have fallen by almost 10%, meaning that all the progress made in late 2011, could be wiped, out, and growing particularly in Brazil, may face a hard time accessing both credit and investment to expand in the near future.


(아주경제 앤드류 이 기자)
기사 이미지 확대 보기
닫기