Coca-Cola drinks recalled in 3 European countries due to high chlorate levels
Coca-Cola's European bottling unit has ordered a major recall in three countries after finding a high level of a thyroid-disrupting chemical in some soft drinks.
The recall applies to Belgium, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands, though limited quantities of the drinks were also sent to other countries, according to Coca-Cola Europacific Partners, which handles bottling and distribution in Europe, Australia, and parts of Asia.
The affected products – reportedly including Coke, Fanta, Sprite, Tropico, and Minute Maid brands – contain a higher level of chlorate, which originates from chlorine disinfectants widely used in food processing and water treatment.
High levels of chlorate in food and drinking water can pose health risks by interfering with the thyroid's iodine intake, temporarily changing thyroid hormone levels.
It's particularly risky for people with thyroid disorders, babies, and children, but one-time exposure 'has only a negligible effect,' according to the German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment.
The European Union has rules on the maximum level of chlorate residue that is allowed in food.
A Coca-Cola Europacific Partners spokesperson told Euronews Health that 'independent expert analysis has concluded that the likelihood of any associated risk for consumers is very low'.
The affected drinks have production codes ranging from 328 GE to 338 GE. These codes can be found on the bottom of the soda can or on the neck of the bottle.
The spokesperson said the firm is in contact with authorities in other European countries where the drinks were shipped, but that no other recalls have been initiated.
The company 'considers the quality and safety of its products as its top priority,' the spokesperson said.
Last year, Coca-Cola in Austria recalled millions of plastic bottles over concerns that they may have contained metal fragments.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Euronews
18 hours ago
- Euronews
EU ministers propose international limits on sperm 'super donors'
A coalition of EU health ministers wants to set international limits on the number of children a single sperm or egg donor can produce, putting an end to the "super sperm donor" phenomenon. The proposal, in the form of an information note, was introduced in Luxembourg on Friday by Sweden and Belgium during a meeting of EU health ministers, and it is backed by four other countries: France, Hungary, the Netherlands, and Spain. While many European countries, including Sweden – one of the lead proponents – have national laws that cap the number of children per donor, no international regulations currently exist. Some commercial sperm and egg banks have set voluntary limits, such as 75 families per donor. However, others have no such restrictions. As a result, it's not uncommon for donor-conceived individuals to discover they have more than 100 genetic half-siblings, in stories that frequently attract public attention. A Dutch sperm donor suspected of fathering over 550 children worldwide and Telegram CEO Paul Durov, rumoured to be the biological father of more than 100 children through years of sperm donation, are some of the better-known examples. These and other similar cases raise "new concerns about the potential psychosocial impact on donor-conceived children and donors,' Swedish Health Minister Acko Ankarberg Johansson said. More recently, further calls were made to limit the number of donations after another Dutch donor whose sperm carried a rare cancer-related genetic variant was used to conceive at least 52 children, some of whom have been diagnosed with cancer. Call for a cross-border donor register Explaining their proposal, the ministers have argued that international action is needed not only due to ethical concerns but also because of demographic trends, including declining fertility rates and delayed family planning. These trends have compelled many EU countries to increasingly rely on commercial gamete banks that operate internationally, making it harder to enforce donor limits. Belgian Health Minister Frank Vandenbroucke said that international limits would only be practical if supported by a comprehensive cross-border donor register. 'We badly need a Europe-wide quota supported by an EU register to ensure proper implementation,' he said. 'It is unacceptable that children or parents have to discover through genetic testing that they could have 70 or more half-siblings across Europe or even globally. That is unethical and a risk factor,' he continued. While several member states support the initiative, the European Commission is, for now, proceeding cautiously. Proponents have called for an update to the EU regulation on substances of human origin. However, this legislation was revised only recently, in June 2024. Speaking at the meeting, the European Commission's top health official, Director-General for Health and Food Safety Sandra Gallina, called the issue a recurrent concern for member states and patients. She pointed out, however, that regulating donor offspring numbers falls mainly under national jurisdiction, as the EU's mandate in this area is limited to safety and quality standards. 'The EU can help raise awareness among in-vitro fecundation professionals about national donor limits,' Gallina explained. She also announced that the Commission would respond to Sweden and Belgium's request by organising a discussion involving national authorities and the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology (ESHRE), the continent's main professional body in the field.
Euronews
3 days ago
- Euronews
Pesticides: a life ruined by glyphosate
But 30 years of exposure to glyphosate has shattered his dreams and his existence. He was diagnosed five years ago with an intravascular B-cell lymphoma, a rare form of cancer. It has been recognised as an occupational disease. Glyphosate is the most widely used herbicide in the world and also the most controversial. It has been classified as 'probably carcinogenic' by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) since 2015. More recent studies from research institutes such as the French National Institute of Health and Medical Research (INSERM) have established a likely link between exposure to the chemical and certain forms of cancer. Yet, the European Union has extended its authorisation until 2033, relying on studies by EFSA and ECHA, the European authorities for food and chemical safety. Several environmental and consumer rights organisations challenged the decision before the European Court of Justice last April. The gap between assessments results from the methodologies used by research institutes and European regulatory agencies, according to Xavier Coumoul, a toxicologist and researcher at Inserm in France. 'When a pesticide manufacturer wants to market a product, the regulatory agencies require the manufacturer to conduct its own tests to prove the product is safe,' he explains. This process raises many questions surrounding the independence of these surveys. 'EFSA gives little consideration to epidemiological studies and relies considerably on what the industry provides, whereas Inserm or IARC rely much more on the academic literature and monitoring real-life product use.' Ludovic Maugé, whose life now hangs by a thread, is among those for whom the product's toxicity is undeniable. After undergoing more chemotherapy than is usually permitted, his last hope, he says, is a transplant using his own modified stem cells. It's a vanishingly small chance. 'As my oncologist told me, we can no longer speak of a cure,' he confides. Since his cancer was recognised as an occupational disease, Ludovic receives a modest social allowance, along with monthly compensation of 180 euros from Bayer-Monsanto — which manufactured the product that poisoned him. 'It's a pittance, but I don't care. What mattered most to me was to see my illness recognised as work-related.' Despite his daily ordeal, Ludovic, who can no longer work, wants to take his fight further. 'What I want is to spread the message to everyone. Glyphosate destroyed my life — it poisoned me. These products destroy people and destroy nature,' he insists. He is outraged by the EU's decision to renew glyphosate's authorisation. 'When I see politicians reauthorising these products, it makes me furious. It's the pesticide lobby. Unfortunately, we can't do anything against these politicians and Bayer-Monsanto. If I had one thing to say to the European Union, it's this: just ban these products. That's it.' The EU is unlikely to suspend its association agreement with Israel in the context of its current conflict with Iran, sources familiar with the issue have told Euronews. Last month a majority of the EU foreign ministers backed a Dutch proposal to review the bloc's ties with Israel over its actions in Gaza. The EU's diplomatic corps, the External Action Service (EEAS), has been reviewing the bloc's wide-ranging trade and cooperation agreement with Israel over its military offensive in Gaza and the West Bank as well as its blocking of food, fuel, water and basic medical supplies to the besieged population. The report was initiated to establish whether Israel violated its human rights obligations under Article 2 of the EU-Israel Association Agreement, a broad-ranging pact that defines the trading and diplomatic relations between both sides. On Monday, EU foreign ministers will debate the review, with several EU diplomatic sources saying it expected to find Israel in breach of the provisions. But two sources familiar with the issue told Euronews that member states will not respond by suspending in all, or even part the agreement with Israel due to its war with Iran. Some countries remain keen to push for a suspension. 'We can safely assume what the review will say; if it's going to be in any way credible it'll say Israel is in breach of Article 2,' an EU diplomat from a country which supported the review told Euronews, adding: 'The main matter of business is getting a ceasefire in Gaza – and whatever we decide to do, it should be aimed at getting at that.' But a momentum of pressure recently applied to Israel has now slowed due to the war with Iran, the two sources said. 'The pendulum has swing back to [support for] Israel." 'It's unlikely the EU will suspend EU-Israel agreement due to Iran Israel war,' one of the sources said. The position of Germany in the negotiations is also critical to the discussions as a decision to suspend part of the agreement under qualified majority voting will require the weight of Germany. Last month German chancellor Friedrich Merz shifted the support of Germany - traditionally a stalwart ally of Israel - behind the decision to review the Association Agreement, saying he no longer understood the Israeli army's goal in Gaza. 'To harm the civilian population in such a way… can no longer be justified as a fight against terrorism,' Merz said at the time. However, Merz has strongly supported Israel in the context of the current strikes on Iran saying at the G7 on Tuesday that 'Israel is doing the dirty work for the rest of us'. 'The strikes on Iran should be additional pressure on Israel to suspend the association agreement,' Martin Konecki, who heads the European Middle East Project, told Euronews. 'But now it could create the opposite, it will literally be reduced and it brings the attention away from Gaza,' he said. EU's foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas has reiterated EU calls for a diplomatic resolution to the Israel-Iran war. And again called on all sides to 'abide by international law, and de-escalate the situation'. 'We will not lose sight of what is happening in Gaza... we again call for immediate full aid access, ceasefire, and the release of hostages,' she added. Israel rejected the EU decision to review the bloc's trade and cooperation pact with the country over its intensified offensive in Gaza. "We completely reject the direction taken in the statement, which reflects a total misunderstanding of the complex reality Israel is facing," Marmorstein wrote on X,' Israeli foreign ministry spokesperson Oren Marmorstein said at the time of the decision.
Euronews
4 days ago
- Euronews
Hundreds of Lithuanian nursing students to get free tuition
Lithuania will offer free tuition to hundreds of young people training to become nurses, in a bid to shore up its ailing health workforce. Under the new scheme, 10 colleges and universities will admit 535 people to state-funded nursing programmes for the 2025-2026 school year, according to Lithuania's health ministry. That's 100 more state-funded students than last year, it added. Around the same number of students will be offered unfunded spots, meaning they will have to pay for their nursing education – unless they agree to work in certain medical centres for two years after they graduate, in which case the institutions will cover their tuition. The programme is expected to save self-funded students €10,500 to €16,400 each. 'We would like to invite school graduates and other young people … to connect their future with a noble mission that is extremely necessary for the state – the nursing profession,' Laimutė Vaidelienė, Lithuania's vice minister of health, said in a statement. Once they graduate, students will be encouraged to return to their hometowns for their two-year placements. They can pursue any field they like – whether that's general practice, emergency care, psychiatry, paediatrics, or something else, the health ministry said. The European Union will provide €17 million for the programme as part of a broader effort to fix nursing shortages across the bloc, which are driven by both an ageing population that needs more healthcare services and retirements and other departures within the health workforce. In 2022, for example, Lithuania had 27.6 nurse graduates per 100,000 people, ranking 11th among 33 European countries with data. But 51.5 per cent of its nurses were aged 55 or older, a higher rate than anywhere else. Few nurses migrated to Lithuania from other countries, prompting the Baltic nation to look for ways to boost its nursing pipeline. 'Nursing is more than a job,' Vaidelienė said. 'It is an opportunity to help, care, be needed, contribute to people's health, public welfare and the preservation of life, and to constantly grow as a person and as a specialist'. Navin Chaudhary had just begun eating his meal when a loud bang startled him. He turned back to see a massive fire taking over the dining area where he and other trainee doctors had assembled for lunch. As the blaze approached, he rushed toward a window and jumped. From the ground, looking upwards, the sight of the Air India plane's tail cone hanging from the burning building propelled Chaudhary and fellow medical students into action. 'There was fire and many were injured,' said Chaudhary. He said he felt lucky to survive but knew he had a task at hand. He rushed to the hospital's intensive care unit, where the injured, most of whom had burns, were wheeled in on stretchers. 'I felt that as a doctor I could save someone's life,' he said. 'I was safe. So I thought, whatever I can do, I should.' At least 270 died when the Air India flight crashed into the campus of a medical college in Ahmedabad shortly after takeoff on Thursday. Only one passenger among the 242 aboard survived. At least 29 others on the ground, including five medical students inside the hostel, were also killed. Many believe that the death toll would have been higher if it had not been for the intervention of the trainee doctors and students who emerged from the smouldering hostel and rushed to save their colleagues. Akshay Zala, a senior medical student, said the crash felt 'like an earthquake'. 'I could hardly see anything as thick plumes of smoke and dust engulfed everything. I was barely able to breathe,' he said. Zala rushed to safety, running through dust and smoke. He cleaned and bandaged a wound on his left leg and then joined others at the medical college's trauma centre to treat the injured. On Monday, the crash site teemed with excavators and workers clearing the debris. Officials inspected the building in search of clues that could enable the investigators to figure out what led to the tragedy. Barely a kilometre away, trainee doctors who survived one of India's worst aviation disasters were still working to identify the victims through DNA testing. Indian authorities have so far handed over the remains of 47 victims The bodies of 92 others have also been identified through DNA matching and will be transferred to relatives soon. College dean Minakshi Parikh said that many of the doctors who pulled their colleagues out of the debris, later that day went back to their duties to save as many lives as they could. 'They did that and that spirit has continued till this moment,' Parikh said. Images of the hostel's dining area shortly after the crash showed parts of the aircraft and pieces of luggage strewn on the floor. Dining plates still containing food lay on the few dusty tables that were left intact by the impact. 'So that is human nature, isn't it? When our own people are injured, our first response is to help them," Parikh said. "So the doctors who managed to escape... the first thing that they did was they went back in and dug out their colleagues who were trapped inside'. 'They might not even have survived because the rescue teams take time coming," she added.
