Coca-Cola Co. (KO), the world’s largest
beverage maker, plans to remove brominated vegetable oil (BVO) from all its
U.S. drinks by the end of this year, abandoning an ingredient that has been
targeted by food activists.
The
additive, known as BVO, will be taken out of both ready-to-drink beverages and
fountain-machine formulas, Coca-Cola spokesman Josh Gold said in a statement on
5 May. BVO is used as a stabilizer in drinks like Powerade,
helping prevent ingredients from separating. PepsiCo Inc. (PEP).
BVO
has drawn criticism on social media and online forums such as Change.org,
where Sarah Kavanagh, a teenager from Hattiesburg, Mississippi,
garnered thousands of signed petitions lobbying against it. The U.S. Food and
Drug Administration lets drink companies use BVO at up to 15 parts per million,
though the agency dropped it from its “Generally Recognized as Safe” list of
food ingredients in 1970.
Health
concerns about BVO stem from its use of bromide, the element found in
brominated flame retardants, according to the Mayo Clinic. Coca-Cola, based in
Atlanta, will switch to using sucrose acetate isobutyrate
or glycerol ester of rosin -- either alone or in combination.