Question from HAH
Hello Debra,
Bromate (Potassium Bromate) is calmly entering our FLOURS and bake goods! What is going on???
Where can we find ‘Organic Unbromated Flour’???
Thank you,
HAH
Debra’s Answer
Actually, potassium bromate has been in flour and baked goods for a long time, and recently there has been LESS potassium bromate in flour and baked goods, though more attention has been given to it, so more people are aware of it.
Potassium bromate (KBrO3) is a bromate of potassium. A bromate is a chemical compound that is formed when ozone and bromide react according to a specific chemical reaction.
Potassium bromate is typically used in flour to strengthen bread dough (bread of all kinds, including rolls, buns, and other bread products) and allow higher rising. It is also used in doughnuts and cakes. It may appear on the label as “potassium bromate” or “bromated flour”, but may also be present in products that don’t have labels, such as deli sandwiches and bakery products purchased unpackaged.
Under the right conditions, potassium bromate is completely used up in the baking bread and none remains in the finished product. If too much is added, or if the bread is not properly, then a residual amount will remain, which can be harmful to health if consumed. In 1992-93 and 1998-99, the FDA tested several dozen baked goods and found that many contained bromate at levels they considered to be unsafe. Yet, the agency still allowed this additive to be used and that continues today.
The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) considers bromate to be a category 2B carcinogen (possibly carcinogenic to humans). Bromate was first found to cause tumors in rats in 1982. It has been banned from use in food products in Europe, the United Kingdom, Canada, and most other countries.
Though potassium bromate has not been banned In the United States the FDA has urged bakers to voluntarily stop using it since 1991. In California bromate was declared a carcinogen under Proposition 65, requring that baked goods sold in California would have to bear a cancer warning if they contained more than a certain level of bromate. Rather than label their baked goods as being carcinogenic, most California bakers have switched to bromate-free flour.
