Food Warning - Lead in Red Wine and Balsamic Vinegars

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BBQ Mikey said:
To stay up to date on any harmful foods, I decided to start a thread (not sure if any others exist).

I recently read that California has labeled the Balsamic and Red Wine Vinegars as toxic in Proposition 65 (» Proposition 65 - Lead in Red Wine and Balsamic Vinegar) That is unsettling to me.

Feel free to chime in and update us all for other "unsafe" foods.
Click to expand...

I don't know about you, but I probably don't consume 1-2 cups of either vinegar per week, much less per day ;)

When you look a little further:
Napa Valley Naturals - Frequently Asked Questions

Why is there naturally occurring lead in some of your vinegars?

All balsamic and red wine vinegars contain naturally occurring lead. Lead is naturally absorbed by all things that grow in the ground, including the grapes used to make vinegar. Most balsamic and red wine vinegars have lead levels equal to or less than 34 parts per million. An average person would need to consume 1 to 2 cups of balsamic or red wine vinegar per day to reach the Proposition 65 lead level minimum threshold, which includes a 1000-fold safety margin. The relative danger from consuming balsamic and red wine vinegars is best compared to other products containing naturally occurring lead, consumed daily at far greater levels. For instance, one can readily consume more naturally occurring lead on a daily basis by drinking water and wine, and eating many types of vegetables, than by consuming even significant quantities of balsamic and red wine vinegars.
 
I'm not too worried.

"The Spectrum Organics website (one of the vinegars said to be "unsafe")says “the Proposition 65 consumption quantity defined as no significant risk level for cancer was set at 15 micrograms per day. Lead is a naturally occurring element in some wine and balsamic vinegars. Based on the Company’s tests, a person would need to consume somewhere between 1.3-2.6 cups (270-630ml) daily of the Company’s various vinegar products to reach the Proposition 65 lead level.”

Bill Targets State Food Label Warnings
 
Balsamic Vinegar

Live in California and heard about this last year. Trader Joe's still has the vinegar last time I looked. Considering all that is toxic used to grow food this vinegar issue isn't something to be overly concerned about unless one is drinking glasses of the stuff each day. I'd be more concerned about the preservative sodium benzoate used is way too many foods.
 
I suppose it isnt overtly harmful to consume a bit of this Vinegar, but it is good to know that it should be used sparingly.
 
This has been around for sometime, first came to light last year. You would need a LOT to have an ill effects, but then again, a lot of vinegar period, will do a number on you.


And agreed, great idea for a thread.
 
dragonflystars said:
.... I'd be more concerned about the preservative sodium benzoate used is way too many foods.
Click to expand...

One of the things that encouraged me to do even more of my own cooking was the time I saw a pallet of 80 pound sacks bearing Skull and Crossbones and the words FOOD GRADE.

Food Grade Poison ... Oh Yeah!
 
Walt Bulander said:
You think that's bad, how about DHMO??
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I'm pretty sure we could go an entire very long and healthy lifetime without being exposed to one molecule of lead.

Can't say the same about DHMO.


I could be wrong about the Lead, years ago I took an advanced Photo course where we performed selenium toning. It was is a 'wear protective glove or use tongs' process because selenium is a health hazard.

So you can imagine the 'head snap' I did the first time I heard a commercial bragging their vitamins were fortified with selenium.

DHMO and selenium, examples of how too much of a good thing will kill.
 
Wart said:
I'm pretty sure we could go an entire very long and healthy lifetime without being exposed to one molecule of lead. ...
Click to expand...

I'm afraid that if it has roots in the earth (vegetable, fruit, nut, legume, cereal grain, etc.), and you've eaten it - bummer ... you've consumed more than one molecule of lead (sorry gang - that includes organic, too).
 
It's widely used in industry,
In agriculture too...

They pour it on the ground,
or in a river when they're through.

And through the ecosystem,
it gets into me and you...

Which they dare not deny!

---------------------------

And it's routinely added to food products, but I've never heard of the FDA approving it specifically as a food additive.

---------------------------

How far DHMO has spread no one can safely tell.
They've found it on Europa, and it's on our Moon as well.
It may well turn our Solar System to a living (heck)!
It's filling up the sky!
 
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Michael in FtW said:
I'm afraid that if it has roots in the earth (vegetable, fruit, nut, legume, cereal grain, etc.), and you've eaten it - bummer ... you've consumed more than one molecule of lead (sorry gang - that includes organic, too).
Click to expand...


Hey, the healthy life without exposure to one molecule of lead was intended as a theoretical.

I use to buy leaded gasoline. I pumped my share of lead into the atmosphere just like millions of others. If lead wasn't everywhere 200 years ago it sure is now! :mad:
 
Also consider that gasoline powered farm equipment did exist while leaded gas was the norm...

We may not be up where the romans were (with lead drinking water water pipes...) but our exposure to lead is probably many times higher than a lot of earlier eras.

Frankly the risk of lead contamination from the consumption of a cup of vinegar a day seems fairly tiny. Do you know ANYONE who consumes a cup of vinegar a day on a personal basis?
 
VaporTrail said:
Also consider that gasoline powered farm equipment did exist while leaded gas was the norm...
Click to expand...

And farmers use to spray the used motor oil under fences to keep the weeds down.


We may not be up where the romans were (with lead drinking water water pipes...) but our exposure to lead is probably many times higher than a lot of earlier eras.
Click to expand...

Let's not forget the earlier efforts in the tinning and canning of foods.


Frankly the risk of lead contamination from the consumption of a cup of vinegar a day seems fairly tiny. Do you know ANYONE who consumes a cup of vinegar a day on a personal basis?
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My brother in law, think drug tests.

But then do in-laws count?
 
Wow... a cup or more of vinegar a day?

So does he take it straight or on the rocks? :)
 
Wart said:
My brother in law, think drug tests.

But then do in-laws count?
Click to expand...

I'd guess he's not drinking balsamic or red wine vinegar for this purpose (the original topic of this thread) ;) Distilled white vinegar is much cheaper. Still, I'd wonder about the effect of that much acid on the stomach and intestinal linings :ermm:
 
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