Barbara Minton, Natural Society
Waking Times

Research shows which brands to choose.

There is no doubt that almonds were once one of the healthiest foods on Earth; there are many health benefits of almonds. But before you buy almonds today, here is something you should know: most of the almonds sold in the U.S. have been fumigated with propylene oxide, a chemical that even the CDC has admitted causes cancer.

In 2007, it became illegal for raw almonds to be sold in the U.S. What brought about this law was an outbreak of Salmonella in Canada that was traced back to an almond grower in California. The California Department of Health Services stepped in to help this grower increase the safety of his almonds, and that appeared to be the end of it.

But a second surprising outbreak of Salmonella occurred shortly after, and several government agencies got together to mandate treatment so there would be no more Salmonella outbreaks. If you are thinking how strange it is that Salmonella would occur in something as dry as almonds, you are not alone.

To achieve a dramatic reduction of salmonella, almonds had to be treated in one of two ways:

Exposure to heat sufficient to raise the temperature to 200 degrees

Insertion of the kernels into a closed chamber to be fumigated with propylene oxide gas

This all happened very quickly, and many small and mid sized almond growers were pushed out of business by the cost of compliance. The result is that the once-thriving almond industry made up of many small growers has been diverted to big corporate almond producers.

As it played out, almonds sold as ‘organic’ are generally treated with the heat process to achieve a kernel temperature of 200 degrees. Those not labeled as ‘organic’ are fumigated with propylene oxide gas, as a general rule.

This means that all almonds sold in the U.S. have been treated in one of these ways and thus have lost much of their life-enhancing properties. The only potential exceptions are almonds shipped from another country, and almonds sold in small amounts directly from the grower at local markets or roadside stands.

The Danger of Propylene Oxide

Propylene oxide (PPO) is banned in Mexico, Canada, and all of the E.U. In the U.S., it has been banned by both the American Motorcycle and the National Hot Rod Associations, where it had been used as fuel before the dangers of its noxious fumes became apparent.

Propylene oxide is classified as hazardous to health under the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals, for its acute toxicity, ability to cause irritation, and its mutagenic and carcinogenic properties.

Which Almond Brand is Best? Research Shows…

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