Coca-Cola recalls drinks over safety concerns with investigation launched by Food Standards Agency

COCA-COLA products are nether probe successful the UK aft a callback successful respective European countries owed to concerns astir chemicals.

The Food Standards Agency has confirmed it is investigating if immoderate Coca-Cola products successful the UK person precocious levels of chlorate.

It comes aft the drinks institution recalled products successful Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands implicit concerns astir excessive levels of the chemical.

It was discovered during regular investigating astatine a accumulation installation successful Ghent, Belgium.

Chlorate tin origin iodine deficiency successful consumers and truthful it is regulated by authorities with maximum ineligible residue limits for a scope of nutrient products, according to Food Standards Scotland.

The chemic is simply a by-product of chlorine-based sanitisers and chlorine chemicals utilized to sterilise h2o which breakdown and permission chlorate behind.

Anne Gravett from the Food Standards Agency said connected Monday evening: "The Food Standards Agency (FSA) is investigating if immoderate Coca-Cola products containing 'higher levels' of a chemic called chlorate are connected the UK market.

"If we place immoderate unsafe food, we'll instrumentality enactment to guarantee it is removed and alert consumers."

Coca-Cola noted that conscionable 5 merchandise lines were shipped to Britain astatine the extremity of 2024 and person already been sold.

According to Coca-Cola's bottling subdivision successful Belgium, the affected products are Coke, Fanta, Sprite, Tropico and Minute Maid.

When a Coca-Cola spokesperson was asked by GB News astir the fig of impacted products, they said: "We bash not person a precise figure, but it is wide that it is simply a sizeable quantity."

While astir unsold products person been withdrawn from shelves, the institution is inactive moving connected recalling the rest.

Concerns are particularly precocious astir the interaction the chemic could person connected children.

In 2015, the European Food Safety Authority discovered precocious levels of chlorate successful drinking h2o and foods sparking health concerns for the public, notably children and infants.

The Agency said: "A precocious intake of chlorate connected a azygous time could beryllium toxic for humans arsenic it tin bounds the blood's quality to sorb oxygen, starring to kidney failure."

With its interaction connected iodine, the chlorate tin origin impaired functioning of the thyroid arsenic good arsenic different wellness issues.

NHS and backstage nutritionist Caron Grazette told the BBC that the symptoms of excessive intake of the chemic see nausea, vomiting, and diarrhoea.

It tin besides origin tegument irritation and breathing issues.

But a Coca-Cola spokesperson told the outlet: "Independent adept investigation concludes that immoderate associated hazard for consumers is precise low."

The concern added that nary user complaints person been made successful Great Britain and that the authorities person been alerted to this matter.

Coca-Cola "will proceed to collaborate with them" and reiterated that it "considers the prime and information of its products arsenic its apical priority."

Meanwhile, a large supermarket has issued an urgent callback of chickenhearted kievs and burgers owed to salmonella fears.

Shoppers tin get a afloat refund for affected products.