Food Engineering logo
search
cart
facebook twitter linkedin youtube
  • Sign In
  • Create Account
  • Sign Out
  • My Account
Food Engineering logo
  • NEWS
    • Latest Headlines
    • Manufacturing News
    • People & Industry News
    • Plant Openings
    • Recalls
    • Regulatory Watch
    • Supplier News
  • PRODUCTS
    • New Plant Products
    • New Retail Products
  • TOPICS
    • Alternative Protein
    • Automation
    • Cannabis
    • Cleaning | Sanitation
    • Fabulous Food Plants
    • Food Safety
    • Maintenance Strategies
    • OEE
    • Packaging
    • Sustainability
    • More
  • EXCLUSIVES
    • Plant Construction Survey
    • Plant of the Year
    • Sustainable Plant of the Year
    • State of Food Manufacturing
    • Top 100 Food & Beverage Companies
  • MEDIA
    • Podcasts
    • Videos
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
  • FOOD MASTER
  • EVENTS
    • Food Automation & Manufacturing Symposium and Expo
    • Industry Events
  • RESOURCES
    • eNewsletter
    • Custom Content & Marketing Services
    • FE Store
    • Government Links
    • Industry Associations
    • Market Research
    • Classified Ads
  • EMAGAZINE
    • eMagazine
    • Archive Issue
    • Advertise
  • SIGN UP!
Food Safety

TECH FLASH

Arsenic in your rice?

First, it was arsenic in fruit juices; now it's rice

Brown rice
October 29, 2012

Brown rice

In January, Consumer Reports published an article, “Arsenic in your juice: How much is too much? Federal limits don’t exist.” Recently, the consumer watchdog produced a second report finding some high levels of inorganic arsenic, a carcinogen, in several rice products. “Arsenic in your food” reports on tests including more 200 samples of a host of rice products.

According to the article, no federal limits exist for arsenic in most foods, but EPA’s standard for drinking water is 10 parts per billion (ppb). The article says levels of 10 ppb of arsenic in drinking water is twice what EPA originally proposed as safe, and the level of 5 ppb is what the state of New Jersey established as safe levels. Consumer Reports used the level of 5 ppb to establish what it considers a safe level in foods for the tests it performed on various rice products. Using the 5-ppb level in its study, the researchers found a single serving of some rice products could give an average adult almost one-and-a-half times more inorganic arsenic than that in a whole day’s consumption of water, about one liter.

The study found the following trends:

►White rice grown in Arkansas, Louisiana, Missouri and Texas generally had higher levels of total arsenic and inorganic arsenic than rice samples from elsewhere.

►The average total and inorganic arsenic levels were always higher for brown rice than for white.

►People who ate rice had arsenic levels that were 44 percent greater than those who had not, according to an analysis of federal health data.

►Reducing arsenic in food is feasible.

Based on these findings, Consumer Reports experts are asking FDA to set limits for arsenic in rice products and fruit juices as a starting point.

Shortly after the Consumer Reports study was published, FDA published an online article, FDA Looks for Answers on Arsenic in Rice, which can be found in FDA’s consumer pages. FDA has analyzed nearly 200 samples of rice and rice products and is collecting about 1,000 more. Rice is used as an ingredient in products like cereals, rice beverages and rice cakes.

According to FDA, arsenic levels in rice can vary greatly from sample to sample—even within the same product. FDA testing of initial samples found these levels of inorganic arsenic in micrograms (equivalent to ppb):

►Rice (other than Basmati rice): 6.7 per 1 cup (cooked)

►Rice cakes: 5.4 per 2 cakes

►Rice beverages: 3.8 per 240ml (some samples not tested for inorganic arsenic)

►Rice cereals: 3.5 per 1 cup

►Basmati rice: 3.5 per 1 cup cooked

Based on data and scientific literature available now, FDA isn’t recommending that consumers change their consumption of rice and rice products at this time, but suggests people eat a balanced diet of grains.

“We understand that consumers are concerned about this matter. FDA is committed to ensuring that we understand the extent to which substances such as arsenic are present in our foods, what risks they may pose, whether these risks can be minimized, and to sharing what we know,” says FDA Commissioner Margaret A. Hamburg, MD.

Consumer Reports, however, is asking FDA to set safe levels of arsenic in our food, much like the EPA has done with drinking water.

KEYWORDS: adulteration contamination healthy foods

Share This Story

Looking for a reprint of this article?
From high-res PDFs to custom plaques, order your copy today!

Recommended Content

JOIN TODAY
to unlock your recommendations.

Already have an account? Sign In

  • Global Organic Food & Beverage Market to Grow

    Global Organic Food & Beverage Market to Grow

    With a CAGR of 12.07%, Bonafide Research estimates this...
    Latest headlines
  • skilled MEP worker

    Predicting Food and Beverage Manufacturing Trends for 2024

    The two words that should be kept in mind are labor and...
    Automation
    By: Derrick Teal
  • cleaning and sanitation

    The basics of cleaning and sanitation in food plants

    Sanitation maintains or restores a state of cleanliness...
    Cleaning | Sanitation
    By: Richard F. Stier
Subscribe For Free!
  • eMagazine
  • eNewsletter
  • Online Registration
  • Manage My Preferences
  • Customer Service

More Videos

Popular Stories

Conagra Logo

Conagra Brands to Sell Chef Boyardee Brand to Hometown Food Company

Chobani groundbreaking

Chobani to Build $1.2B Manufacturing Facility in New York

conveying and packaging operations

Planning Tips for Conveying Systems and Lines

CHECK OUT OUR NEW ESSENTIAL TOPICS

Alternative ProteinAutomationCleaning/SanitationFabulous Food Plants

Food SafetyMaintenance StrategiesOEE

PackagingSustainability

Events

June 17, 2025

Refrigerated & Frozen Foods’ State of the Cold Chain

Kelley Rodriguez, Editor in Chief of Refrigerated & Frozen Foods, will be joined in this 60-minute webinar by industry experts to help unpack the latest research.

January 1, 2030

Webinar Sponsorship Information

For webinar sponsorship information, visit www.bnpevents.com/webinars or email webinars@bnpmedia.com.

View All Submit An Event

Products

Recent Advances in Ready-to-Eat Food Technology

Recent Advances in Ready-to-Eat Food Technology

See More Products

Foodmaster.com

Related Articles

  • India passes food bill amid worry over cost

    FDA study shows arsenic levels in rice too low to cause short-term health damage

    See More
  • FDA proposes new “action level” for arsenic in apple juice

    FDA proposes new “action level” for arsenic in apple juice

    See More
  • IFT identifies 7 supermarket trends

    Weighing the concern over arsenic in food

    See More

Related Products

See More Products
  • Rice-Engineering-Website-Cover-439x600.jpg

    Advances in Science & Engineering of Rice

  • Minerals_in_Food-Lg.jpg

    Minerals in Food

  • small-occ.jpg

    Occupational Health and Safety in the Food and Beverage Industry

See More Products
×

Elevate your expertise in food engineering with unparalleled insights and connections.

Get the latest industry updates tailored your way.

JOIN TODAY!
  • RESOURCES
    • Advertise
    • Contact Us
    • Food Master
    • Store
    • Want More
  • SIGN UP TODAY
    • Create Account
    • eMagazine
    • eNewsletter
    • Customer Service
    • Manage Preferences
  • SERVICES
    • Marketing Services
    • Reprints
    • Market Research
    • List Rental
    • Survey/Respondent Access
  • STAY CONNECTED
    • LinkedIn
    • Facebook
    • YouTube
    • X (Twitter)
  • PRIVACY
    • PRIVACY POLICY
    • TERMS & CONDITIONS
    • DO NOT SELL MY PERSONAL INFORMATION
    • PRIVACY REQUEST
    • ACCESSIBILITY

Copyright ©2025. All Rights Reserved BNP Media.

Design, CMS, Hosting & Web Development :: ePublishing