Read
the following words/expressions found in today’s article.
1. mandatory (adj.) [man-duh-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee] – must be followed according to the law or the rule
1. mandatory (adj.) [man-duh-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee] – must be followed according to the law or the rule
Example: Government laws are mandatory to everyone.
2. minimum (n.) [min-uh-muhm] – the
smallest acceptable or required number
Example: A student needs a minimum score of 70 to pass the exam.
3. petition (n.) [puh-tish-uhn] – a written
request that is signed by a large number of people
Example: Citizens made a petition to change some government rules.
4. scientific (adj.) [sahy-uhn-tif-ik] – related
to science
Example: People use new scientific knowledge to create better technology.
5. reduction (n.) [ri-duhk-shuhn] – act of
lessening in amount
Example: Reduction
of sugar in food can keep one healthy.
Article
Read the text below.
Big corporations like Coca-Cola and
Pepsi will change their sodas’ caramel coloring to avoid adding cancer warnings on their products.
A California law makes it mandatory
for products with a minimum amount
of cancer-causing ingredients to
have a cancer warning label. The caramel coloring used in most sodas was
recently added to the list of such ingredients.
The Center for Science in the Public
Interest (CSPI) filed a petition in
February 2011 against the use of the caramel coloring. Through its study, the
non-profit organization found a chemical in caramel coloring that can cause
cancer to mice and rats.
The US Food and Drug Administration
is studying the petition, but it has initially said that a person would have
to drink over 1,000 cans of soda each day before the chemical would cause
cancer-related health problems.
Meanwhile, the American Beverage
Association said California added caramel coloring to its list of
cancer-causing ingredients based only on a study involving animals. The
association emphasized that no scientific
study proves that caramel coloring causes cancer to humans.
Nonetheless, Coca-Cola and Pepsi have
asked caramel suppliers to change caramel cooking methods, because the
cooking process produces the cancer-causing chemical.
A reduction of the chemical has already been done for drinks sold
in California. The soda companies will also apply the chemical reduction to
products across the US to simplify the process of making their soda.
According to a Coca-Cola
representative, consumers will not notice any difference in the product.
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Viewpoint Discussion
Enjoy a discussion with your tutor.
Discussion A
·
How important are food labels?
·
Is it right for the government to
control food labels? Why or why not?
Discussion B
·
How will
cancer warning labels affect food companies? Why or why not?
·
What
can food companies do to convince customers that their products are safe?