Coffee in California to require cancer warning

The coffee industry has contended that it is impossible to eliminate acrylamide without affecting flavour, and that the exposure is harmless to consumers. — AP

Starbucks and other coffee purveyors will probably have to use warning labels after a Los Angeles judge ruled that they failed to prove they should be exempt from a California law on carcinogens and toxic chemicals.

Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Elihu M. Berle wrote in a tentative decision in April 2018 that the coffee companies did not meet their burden to prove that there was a safe level for consumers for a chemical compound created in roasting coffee.