ACSH staffers would like to take our hats off to Coca-Cola CEO Muhtar Kent, who announced in an annual company meeting Wednesday in Atlanta that he does not believe there exists sufficient scientific evidence to stop using BPA in the epoxy linings of the company’s iconic cans.
“If we had any sliver of doubt about the safety of our packaging, we would not continue to use [BPA]. It’s that simple,” Mr. Kent stated, despite the fact that 26 percent of Coca-Cola’s shareholders, including the two largest proxy advisors in the U.S., asked the soda giant to reveal its plans over the continued use of BPA in its packaging.
ACSH would also like to applaud Alan Caruba for a recent posting on his Warning Signs blog “Scaring Mothers and All Others — The BPA File, Part Four,” which underscores the safety profile of BPA and warns against the “purveyors of fear” who run campaigns to scare everyone about everything in order to enrich themselves.
He allays any qualms over the safety of BPA, writing:
In fact, the use of BPA-derived polymers to line cans and plastic containers has protected our food against contamination and food-borne diseases such as botulism, which is lethal. Thus, the anti-chemical zealots who promulgate misinformation about the dangers of BPA are actually putting the young children and pregnant women they target at a far greater health risk.