“Many soy foods, thought of as ‘healthy options’ on grocery store shelves, contain ingredients that were processed with a neurotoxic and highly-polluting petrochemical compound called hexane,” said Charlotte Vallaeys, Farm and Food Policy Analyst for The Cornucopia Institute, a Wisconsin-based non-profit farm policy research group. “We are pleased to see that several industry leaders have responded to consumer concerns by switching to ingredients produced without the dangerous chemical.”
A scary report released by the Cornucopia Institute in November of 2010 tracked down the use of hexane in the production of some natural soy products. Soybeans are sometimes immersed in hexane (a synthetic, petroleum- based solvent), that is classified as a neurotoxin by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Please be aware that these types of soybeans are then used in natural products and listed a soy protein isolate and soy protein concentrate. This process is not used when processing organic soybeans. Some of the veggie burgers and meat alternatives available without hexane include Amy’s, Field Roast, Sunshine Burgers, Tofurky and a few more.
Below are some quick guides showing which foods do and do not use hexane processing:
Click Here to view the entire online guide
Some favs that people will likely be disappointed to see on the list of products with hexane soy:
Bars:
Greens Plus, Luna, Clif Bar, Odwalla Bar.
Meat Alternatives/Veggies Burgers:
Boca, Gardein, Gardenburger, Lightlife, Morningstar, SoyBoy, Yves, Trader Joe’s Masala.
Check the entire list from the links above and be careful of the products you purchase.
There is also a quick video available to view here and the full report here.
