Orange Juice May Contain Banned Chemical

According to MSNBC.com , the Food and Drug Administration is launching an investigation into chemicals in imported orange juice. An unnamed American juice company detected small amounts of the fungicide carbendazim in both its own juice and a competitor’s juice and notified the FDA. Carbendazim isn’t approved for use on U.S.-grown citrus fruits but is used in Brazil, the world’s largest orange producer.

Plus: New Concerns Over Arsenic and Lead in Fruit Juice

Before you snatch away your kids’ morning O.J., know that the FDA isn’t pulling orange juice off shelves because it doesn’t believe the low levels of chemical will make customers sick. However, since carbendazim is illegal in the U.S., it will be checking all shipments at the border and detaining any that contain the chemical.

But you may find, uh, the squeeze put on your wallet at the market checkout. With the FDA testing juice, the supply is expected to go down, which sent juice stock prices up 11 percent on Tuesday.

Will you keep serving store-brand OJ to your family, or does the FDA investigation make you too nervous to keep drinking it?