Goya Foods slams 'outdated, inaccurate' 4-MEI figures in soft drinks study

Goya Foods has hit back at a study on the safety of 4-MEI in soft drinks by John Hopkins researchers, insisting that the team's data on the caramel color byproduct is 'outdated and inaccurate'.

The study, which we reported on last week, stated that consumers are being put at an unnecessary and avoidable risk of cancer via unduly high levels of 4-MEI in soft drinks including some Pepsi products and malted soft drink brand Malta Goya.

But the company hit back yesterday, with VP and general counsel Carlos G. Ortiz telling BeverageDaily.com: "We want you to know that information reported in the study and published in your article is outdated and inaccurate.

"The 4-MEI figures reported in the study do not reflect what is currently available in the United States marketplace," he added.

"All Malta Goya products in the United States meet California's Prop 65 requirements and the laws of all 50 states and the federal government," Ortiz said.

He added that Goya Foods planned to write to the study's authors requesting that they cease and desist from further publication of "erroneous information related to our products".

Goya Foods' rebuttal follows PepsiCo's similar response last Friday, while the American Beverage Association (ABA) also dismissed the study's findings.

“Leading regulatory and public health organizations around the world have repeatedly confirmed its safety,” Christopher Gindlesperger, senior director for public affairs told this website.

When informed of the Goya Foods statement, the study's senior author Keeve Nachman, from John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, told this website: "We stand by the results of our study."