Pittsburgh, PA – In response to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration alert regarding the fungicide carbendazim, Microbac Laboratories, Inc. has completed validation of an analytical method for the detection of the chemical in orange juice.

The U.S. FDA has issued a letter to alert the orange juice processing industry concerning possible carbendazim concentrations in the orange crop from Brazil. Carbendazim is an approved fungicide for citrus in many countries, however, the use of this fungicide is banned in the United States.

While FDA inspection efforts have primarily involved U.S. brands that may contain a high percentage of Brazilian juice, the extent of the impacted product is not fully known. The FDA has stated that any products found to contain levels greater than 80 parts per billion will be removed from the market.

“Microbac has substantial experience with carbendazim analysis through our agrochemical testing division and, as a result we are able to quickly adapt our methodology and system to accommodate the analysis of juice samples,” said Robert Crookston, Microbac Sr. Vice President.

For more information, please contact:
microbac_info@microbac.com