A Consumer Reports article entitled, “Arsenic in your juice: How much is too much? Federal limits don’t exist,” has raised the question: Why does EPA regulate the amount of arsenic (10 parts per billion, ppb) that can occur in public drinking water, but FDA has no regulations involving the level of arsenic in apple—or grape—juice?
The Consumer Reports article cited a lab study it commissioned that found combined arsenic levels as high as 13.9 ppb in apple juice and 24.7 ppb in some grape juice samples. Combined arsenic levels include organic arsenic (not considered a problem as it is a naturally occurring part of the fruit) and inorganic arsenic (typically caused by pesticide and other chemical residues). Inorganic arsenic is poisonous and can cause cancer and other health issues. In most cases cited, the samples show inorganic arsenic far outweighing organic arsenic levels, typically by a factor of three to one or higher.