Chemical Danger: Substitutes Used In Butter Flavoring May Be Worse

[The Straight Story]

Chemical Danger: Substitutes Used In Butter Flavoring May Be Worse

COLUMBUS, Ohio — When Tom and Carolyn Jones learned that dangerous vapors could be coming from their bags of microwave popcorn, they abandoned their usual nightly routine.

"We went to just popping it, either in a paper bag or a popcorn popper," Carolyn Jones said. "We looked for other options because we were concerned of getting sick."

They were concerned because of a chemical called diacetyl, used to give microwave popcorn its rich, buttery flavor. When it is heated, toxic vapors are released into the air.

The vapors have caused debilitating irreversible lung damage in many popcorn factory employees, including a group from Marion, 10TV's Anietra Hamper reported.

The chemical, along with the companies that used it, made national headlines over the past decade because of the cases of "popcorn lung."

http://www.10tv.com/live/content/teninvestigates/stories/2010/05/03/story-butter-flavoring.html?sid=102

[superduperfarleft]

1. Who are we to tell popcorn companies that they can't use this?

It's their personal choice. I thought people on this site supported the right to choose? After all, if the employees don't like it, they can work elsewhere.





:sarcasm:

[The Straight Story]

4. Would you work there?

They could quit. Or the employer could post a warning about the hazards (and I have worked around a lot of dangerous chemicals before, by choice).

If someone knows the risks and chooses to work their that is their right.

Hiding the risks is another matter.

[Goldom]

2. According to wiki,

"ConAgra Foods, maker of Orville Redenbacher's and Act II microwave popcorn brands, announced it had removed added diacetyl from all of its butter-flavored microwave popcorn varieties." -as of 2007.

[noamnety]

3. and the replacement chemicals are just as bad or worse.

according to the article: "In an effort to calm consumer fears, some popcorn manufacturers have started replacing diacetyl with substitute ingredients. Some even launched campaigns that showed they have cut added diacetyl out of their product.

According to recent toxicology tests by government researchers, the replacement chemicals are just as bad or worse.

Dr. Ann Hubbs and her team at the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health are researching the diacetyl substitutes. Preliminary studies of one substitute, called 2,3-Pentanedione, suggest that the chemical compounds are similar to diacetyl. Laboratory tests showed that they also cause the same aggressive tissue damage.

"Pentanedyone is a little less water soluble, so it might be better able to reach the deep lung, it might actually be more dangerous than diacetyl itself," Hubbs said. "No one wants what happened to the diacetyl workers to happen again.""

[SheilaT]

5. If people want buttered popcorn,

it's just as fast to pop on the top of the stove and then pour real melted butter over the popcorn.

And butter, real butter, is infinitely better than the chemicals in the fake stuff. Plus, I don't get why anyone would eat the microwave "buttered" popcorn. It has the nastiest smell and can't possibly taste good. I've never tried the stuff myself, since I prefer plain salted popcorn.

[cbdo2007]

6. Yeah, this stuff causes cancer. There was a big deal about it in Southern Missouri

a few years ago where there was a big lawsuit and they shut one of the companies down for awhile or something - all over "buttered" popcorn.

Just use real butter. Much healthier than chemicals.