By David Andrews, Ph.D., Senior Scientist, and Elaine Shannon, Editor-in-chief and publisher

Nearly 500 ways to make a yoga mat sandwich

If you’ve planked on a yoga mat, slipped on flip-flops, extracted a cell phone from protective padding or lined an attic with foam insulation, chances are you’ve had a brush with an industrial chemical called azodicarbonamide, nicknamed ADA. In the plastics industry, ADA is the “chemical foaming agent” of choice. It is mixed into polymer plastic gel to generate tiny gas bubbles, something like champagne for plastics. The results are materials that are strong, light, spongy and malleable.

As few Americans realized until Vani Hari, creator of FoodBabe.com, spotlighted it earlier this month, you’ve probably eaten ADA. This industrial plastics chemical shows up in many commercial baked goods as a “dough conditioner” that renders large batches of dough easier to handle and makes the finished products puffier and tough enough to withstand shipping and storage. According to the new EWG Food Database of ingredients in 80,000 foods, now under development, ADA turns up in nearly 500 items and in more than 130 brands of bread, bread stuffing and snacks, including many advertised as “healthy.”

EWG researchers who are constructing the database found that ADA is listed as an ingredient on the labels of many well-known brands of bread, croutons, pre-made sandwiches and snacks, including Ball Park, Butternut, Country Hearth, Fleischman’s, Food Club, Harvest Pride, Healthy Life, Jimmy Dean, Joseph Campione, Kroger, Little Debbie, Mariano’s, Marie Callendar’s, Martin’s, Mother’s, Pillsbury, Roman Meal, Sara Lee, Schmidt, Shoprite, Safeway, Smucker’s, Sunbeam, Turano, Tyson, Village Hearth and Wonder.

This synthetic additive has been largely overlooked because it is not known to be toxic to people in the concentration approved by the federal Food and Drug Administration – 45 parts per million. According to the World Health Organization, workers handling large volumes have reported respiratory symptoms and skin sensitization, but ADA has not undergone extensive testing of its potential to harm human health.

One thing is clear: ADA is not food, as food has been defined for most of human history. It is an industrial chemical added to bread for the convenience of industrial bakers. In centuries past, flour fresh from the mill had to age several months before it could be kneaded into dough and popped into the oven. But in 1956, a New Jersey chemical, pharmaceuticals and engineering firm called Wallace & Tiernan, best known for inventing a mass water chlorination process, discovered that ADA caused flour to “achiev[e] maturing action without long storage.” The result, the firm’s patent application stated, was commercial bread that was “light, soft and suitably moist, yet suitably firm or resilient, and that [had] crusts and internal properties of a pleasing and palatable nature.” The FDA approved ADA as a food additive in 1962. It is not approved for use in either Australia or the European Union.

In the early 1990s, ADA became the preferred dough conditioner of many American commercial bakers as a result of California’s Proposition 65, which went into effect in 1987. This law required California authorities to list certain chemicals in food as “possibly dangerous to human health.” Potassium bromate, then a common dough conditioner, was found to be carcinogenic in test animals and made the Prop 65 list in 1991. ADA was widely adopted as a safer substitute.

Over the years, health activists concerned about synthetic chemicals in food have attacked the widespread use of ADA, but it did not attract nationwide headlines until Hari of Food Babe circulated a petition demanding that Subway, among the nation’s biggest fast-food outlets, stop using the chemical in its loaves. Subway responded [http://www.subway.com/subwayroot/about_us/PR_Docs/QualityBread.pdf] that ADA was safe, but even so, it had quietly been seeking a substitute over the past year. The company pointed out that ADA is “found in the breads of most chains such as Starbuck’s, Wendy’s, McDonald’s, Arby’s, Burger King, and Dunkin Donuts.” Those other fast food giants joined Subway on the defensive.

EWG's Food Database, which is now being tested but is still under development, shows that ADA is widespread in supermarket items as well as fast food. The EWG project is being built on data gathered by FoodEssentials, a company that compiles details about the ingredients in foods sold in American supermarkets. To this data, EWG is adding layers drawn from its research on hazard concerns such as pesticide residues, food additives, and contaminants such as mercury. EWG’s Food Database will be the first of its kind – looking deeply at the nutritional value of foods sold in supermarkets as well as their potential health hazards and degree of processing. The interactive project is funded by support from the GRACE Communications Foundation, the Brin Wojcicki Foundation and EWG’s online community and partners. It is scheduled to be made available to the public in the fall.

The database has two purposes: to empower consumers with the information they need to make healthier shopping choices and to put pressure on food manufacturers to clean up the nation's food supply. It draws on EWG’s expertise and experience gained in developing online databases that have dramatically affected policy debates and consumer awareness on topics including farm subsidies, tap water contaminants, pesticides in produce, hazardous ingredients in personal care products and home cleaners, and the damage done to public land by oil, gas and uranium extraction.

The information detailed in this report on ADA, gathered from FoodEssentials on Feb. 11, represents a snapshot of food market on that date. EWG recognizes that the marketplace is constantly changing as food processors reformulate, discontinue and introduce products. The list of products in this report represents an extensive look at the ingredients in food recently available in stores, but it may not be comprehensive. Shoppers must read product labels to know for certain whether ADA and other chemical additives are in items they’re contemplating buying.

The consumers’ search for healthier food may get easier as the “clean label” trend in food manufacturing gains momentum. Last month, the trade journal Snack Food & Wholesale Bakery reported that commercial bakers and snack food manufacturers are seeking new, better ingredients “mostly due to consumer demand for better-for-you products with clean labels and no genetically modified organisms (GM0s).”

“Clean label,” like “natural,” has no precise legal definition. Food manufacturers often use the term to mean wholesome, without synthetic and unpronounceable ingredients – notably azodicarbonamide.

EWG recommends that consumers take steps to avoid the industrial additive ADA in their food. It is an unnecessary ingredient, its use has raised concerns about occupational exposure, and questions remain about its potential risk to consumers.

EWG also calls on all manufacturers to immediately end its use in food.

Nearly 500 foods containing azodicarbonamide

Brand Name*† Product Aladdin Bakers Jumbo Bagels Cinnamon Raisin America's Choice Muffin Sandwiches Turkey, Sausage, Egg & Cheese Amigos Tortillas Arnold Bakery Light 100% Whole Wheat Bread

Sandwich Rolls, Wheat Artichoke Basilles Pizza Co. Margherita Pizza Artisan Fresh Jumbo Wheat Hoagie Aunt Hattie's Onion Buns

Potato Hamburger Enriched Buns Aunt Millie's Honey & Hamburger Buns

Whole Grain Bread Bagel-Fuls Bagel Filled With Cream Cheese, Original Baker's Treat Big Texas Cheese Roll Pastries Ball Park Flame Grilled Barbeque Chicken Slider

Flame Grilled Beef Sliders

Flame Grilled Cheese Burger Silders

Hot Dog Buns Bell's Traditional Stuffing Betty Crocker Pasta Caesar Salad

Suddenly Pasta Salad, Caesar Big Az Cheeseburger Bimbo Bread Crumbs

Double Fiber Bread

Large Wheat Bread

Sabor Chocolate

Toasted Bread

Toasted Bread, Original Bon Appetit Apple Danish

Blueberry Cream Pastry

Cheese & Berries Danish

Cheese Croissant

Super Cinnamon Roll Bridgford Cinnamon Pull-Apart Monkey Bread

Ready-Dough Frozen White Bread Dough Brownberry Chicago Hot Dog Rolls

Kaiser Sandwich Buns

Sandwich Buns, Onion

Sausage Rolls, Original Bunny Hot Dog Buns Butternut 1/2 Loaf White Enriced Bread

All Whole Grain 100% Whole Wheat Bread

Brown' N Serve Enriched Rolls

Deluxe Buns

Enriched Burger Buns, Sliced

Enriched Hot Dog Buns, Sliced

Hearty Rye Bread

Honey Wheat Bread

Italian Bread

Large Enriched Bread

Sliced Buns, Seeded

Whole Grain White Bread

Whole Wheat Bread Castillo Castillo Croissants Centrella Hot Dog Buns, Enriched

Restaurant Style Caesar Crotons Chef M.J. Brando Grilled Cheese Sandwiches, Cheddar

Grilled Cheese Sandwiches, Swiss Clear Value White Bread Cloverhill Apple Danish Cole's Cheesesticks

Garlic Mini Loaf Connella Bread Crumbs Corfu Foods Inc. Hand Made Pita Country Hearth Dakota Style 12 Grain Bread

Hearty Homestyle 100% Whole Wheat Bread

Hearty Homestyle Honey Grain 'n Oat Bread

Split Top Wheat Bread

Split Top White Bread D'italiano Italian Bread Day'n Night Bites Country Sausge Muffin With Egg'n Cheese Drake's Danish Pastries Cheese Earthgrains Honey Wheat Berry Bread

Sliced French Premium Bread

Wheat Rolls Entenmann's Raspberry Danish Essential Everyday 5 Cheese Texas Toast

Garlic Bread

Garlic Bread Sticks

Garlic Texas Toast European Bakers Onion Rolls

White Sub Rolls Farm Rich French Toast Sticks, Cinnamon Sprinkle

French Toast Sticks, Original Fiber One Hamburger Buns

Hot Dog Buns Fleischmann's Simply Homemade Baking Mix, Pretzel Creations

Simply Homemade No Knead Bread Mix, Country White

Simply Homemade No Knead Bread Mix, Italian Herb

Simply Homemade No Knead Bread Mix, Multi-Grain Food Club Caesar Restaurant Style Croutons

Garlic Cheesesticks

Garlic Dinner Rolls

Seasoned Restaurant Style Croutons

Strawberry Strudel

Stuffing Classics Cornbread Stuffing Mix

Texas Toast, 3 Cheese

Texas Toast, Garlic

French Toast Sticks

Garlic Bread Sticks

Texas Toast, 3 Cheese Freihofer's White Bread Fresh Gourmet Premium Croutons, Butter & Garlic

Premium Croutons, Cheese & Garlic

Premium Croutons, Classic Caesar

Premium Croutons, Garden Herb

Premium Croutons, Italian Seasoned

Premium Croutons, Parmesan Ranch Furlani Garlic Bread

Multi Grain Garlic Toast

Parmesan Garlic Toast

Texas Toast, Garlic

Texas Toast, Pizza

Texas Toast, Three Cheese Gateway Soft Rye Bread Gimbo Conchas Fine Pastry Gollo Galletas De Huevo (Eggs Crackers) Gonnella Sandwich Rolls Great Value Honey Buns

Hot Dog Buns

Wheat Sandwhich Bread Grissom's Hot Dog Sliced Enriched Buns Harvest Pride Awesome Rolls

Seeded Italian Bread

Texas Toast Bread

Wheat Bread

White Enriched Bread Hauswald's Enriched Bread

Split Top Wheat Bread Healthy Life 100% Whole Grain Wheat Bread, Flaxseed

100% Whole Grain Wheat Bread, Sugar Free

100% Whole Wheat English Muffins

100% Whole Wheat Whole Grain Bread

High Fiber White Bread

Hot Dog Buns, Whole Grain

Italian Bread

Light English Muffins

Light Multigrain English Muffins

Soft Style 100% Whole Grain Bread Hearth Of Texas Bread Company 100% Whole Wheat Bread

Enriched Large White Bread

Extra Thin White Bread

Split Top Wheat Bread

Whole Grain White Bread Honey Hot Dog Buns Hormel Country Crock Homestyle Stuffing Hungry-Man Roasted Carved White Meat Turkey Ihop French Toast Breakfast Sandwich, Egg, Canadian Bacon & Cheese

French Toast Breakfast Sandwich, Maple Sausage, Egg & Cheese J. Skinner Cinnamon Craver's Roll J.C. Potter Sausage On A Bun J.J. Cassone 100% Whole Wheat Sandwich Rolls

Enriched Vienna Rolls

Italian Bread

Sliced Hero Rolls

Sliced Sandwich Rolls

Wheat Bran Sandwich Rolls Jimmy Dean Delights Honey Wheat Flatbread, Bacon, Egg & Cheese

Delights Honey Wheat Flatbread, Turkey Sausage, Egg & Cheese

French Toast Griddlers

Muffin, Sausage, Egg & Cheese

Sausage, Egg & Cheese On A Muffin

Turkey Sausages Egg White & Cheese Whole Grain Bagel Joseph Campione Authentic Hearth Baked Garlic Bread

Bread Sticks, Garlic

Cheese Stuffed Bread Sticks

Dinner Rolls, Parmesan Garlic

Garlic Bread, Authentic Hearth Baked

Garlic Mini Loaf

Texas Toast, 5 Cheese

Texas Toast, Garlic

Texas Toast, Parmesan Key Food Seeded Rye European Hearth Bread, Deli Style

Seedless Rye European Hearth Bread, Deli Style Kid Cuisine Kc's Campfire Hot Dog Kroger White Enriched Bread

White Hamburger Enriched Buns L'oven Fresh Split Top Wheat Bread Lakeland Hot Dog Buns Enriched

White Enriched Sandwich Bread Lewis Healthy Life Wheat Hot Dog Buns

Whole Wheat Sandwich Buns Liberty Hearth New York Deli Kaiser Rolls, Poppy Little Debbie Cheese Danish Classic Pastry

Cinnamon Rolls With Icing

Cream Cheese Danish Pastry

Danish Pastry, Cherry Cheese

Honey Buns Maglio Stromboli, Philly Style Steak & Cheese Manischewitz Pumpernickel Bread Mariano's 100% Whole Wheat Bread

Asiago Cheese Focaccia

Bell Pepper Focaccia Muffins

Breadstics

Butterflake Rolls

Cheese Pizza Bread

Chefs Collection Italian Focaccia Half

Cinnamon Raisin Bread

Club Rolls

Egg And Onion Brat Bun

Egg Dinner Rolls

English Muffin Bread

Fresh Tomato Focaccia

Garlic Bread

Ham Swiss Sub

Hamburger Buns

Hard Rolls

Hot Dog Buns

Italian Bread

Italian Specialty Bread By The Pound

Jalapeno Cheddar Focaccia

Jalapeno Cheddar Focaccia Muffins

Kaiser Rolls

Large Kaiser Rolls

Marble Rye Bread

Olive And Parmesan Chop Block Bread

Onion Rye Specialty Bread

Paisano Italiano Sandwich

Parisian Chocolate Croissant

Roast Beef & Cheddar Croissant

Rotisserie Chicken Salad Croissant

Rye Specialty Bread By The Pound

Salami And Provolone Chop Block Bread

Tomato Basil Chop Block Bread

Walnut Raisin Specialty Bread

Wheat Bread

Wheat Club Rolls

Wheat Dinner Rolls

Wheat Hamburger Buns

Wheat Hot Dog Buns

White Bread

Whole Wheat Specialty Bread Marie Callender's Flaky Croissant With Ham & Swiss

Flaky Croissant With Sausage, Egg & Monterey Jack

Spaghetti With Meat Sauce Market Street Butterflake Rolls Martin's Cinnamon Raisin Swirl Potato Bread

Hoagie Rolls, Unseeded

Long Roll, Potato Rolls

Potato Bread, 100% Whole Wheat

Potato Bread, Sandwich

Potato Rolls

Potatobred Soft Cubed Stuffing Marty's Large Rolls Master Hamburger Enriched Buns

Hot Dog Enriched Buns Mckee Cheese Danish With Icing

Cinnamon Rolls Mediterranean Pita Bread Met Foodmarkets Giant White Enriched Bread

Hamburgers Enriched Buns

Hot Dogs Enriched Buns Mother's Giant Enriched White Bread

Split Top Wheat Bread Mrs. Baird's Pastry Kitchen Cinnamon Rolls

Cinnamon Rolls, Cherry

Cinnamon Rolls, Original Mrs. Cubbison's Butter & Garlic Croutons

Corn Bread Stuffing, Seasoned

Seasoned Croutons Mrs. Freshley's Honey Buns Murry's French Toast Bites, Cinnamon Blase New York Bread Sticks With Real Garlic

Hand-Tied Garlic Knots With Real Garlic

Texas Toast, 5 Cheese

Texas Toast, Garlic New York Deli Kaiser Rolls, Plain

Kaiser Rolls, Sesame Old Style Cottage Potato Bread One Republic Skinny Buns Oroweat Raisin Cinnamon Bread Palagonia 100% Whole Wheat Sandwich Rolls

French Bread

Italian Bread

Mini Heros

Panino Italiano

Rolls

Sliced Italina Bread Patriotic Honey Buns Pelmen Blueberry Perogies Peroguis Aux Bleuets

Mushrooms Champigons

Perogies, Cherry

Perogies, Potato With Cheddar Cheese

Perogies, Potato With Cottage Cheese

Perogies, Potato With Spinach & Feta

Perogies, Sauerkraut

Perogies, Sauerkraut Mushrooms

Perogies, Sweet Cottage Cheese Pillsbury Artisan Dinner Rolls

Artisan Pizza Crust With Whole Grain

Breadsticks, Original

Crusty French Loaf

Italian Bread

Pizza Crust, Thin Crust

Toaster Scrambles, Cheese Sauce, Egg & Bacon

Toaster Scrambles, Cheese Sauce, Egg & Sausage

Toaster Strudel Pastries, Apple

Toaster Strudel Pastries, Apple Cream Danish

Toaster Strudel Pastries, Blueberry

Toaster Strudel Pastries, Boston Cream Pie

Toaster Strudel Pastries, Cinnamon With Brown Sugar

Toaster Strudel Pastries, Cream Cheese & Strawberry

Toaster Strudel Pastries, Danish Style Cream Cheese

Toaster Strudel Pastries, Strawberry Potmann's Select Seasoned Croutons Rainbo Thin Sliced White Bread Raybern's New York Deli Style Raybern's New York Deli Style Philly Cheesesteak

Roast Beef Cheddar Melt Rhodes Cinnamon Rolls, Cream Cheese Frosting Roman Meal 100% Whole Wheat Bread Rosa Bianca Garlic Bread Rosen's Sweet Hawaiian Rolls Roundy's 100% Whole Wheat Bread

Blueberry Bagels

Bratwurst Enriched Buns, Sliced

Cinnamon Raisin Swirl Bagel

Croissant Sandwiches

Croutons, Cheese & Garlic

Croutons, Seasoned

Deli Rye Bread, Seedless

Enriched Hot Dog Buns

Everything Bagels

French Bread

Garlic Bread, Original

Garlic Bread, Parmesan

Hamburger Enriched Buns

Italian Sausage Tortelloni

Meat & Fine Herbs Ravioli

Muffin Sandwiches, Ham Egg And Cheese

Muffin Sandwiches, Sausage, Egg & Cheese

Plain Bagels

Presliced Everything Bagels

Quarter Pound Chicken Sandwich

Select 9 Grain Bread

Texas Toast, Garlic

Texas Toast, Three Cheese

Wheat Bread, Split Top

Wheat Muffin Sandwiches, Turkey Sausage, Egg White & Cheese

White Enriched Bread

White Enriched Sandwich Bread S.Rosen's Black Bavarian Rye Bread

Bohemian Style Rye Bread

Brat & Sausage Rolls

Enriched Hot Dog Buns

French Rolls, Italian Beef Rolls

Hawaiian Bread, Pineapple

Kaiser Buns

Marble Rye Swirled

Multi Grain Bread

Rye Bread

Rye Bread, Caraway Seeds

Rye Bread, Unseeded

Wheat With Oat Bran Buns Safeway Cornbread Stuffing Mix

Five Cheese Garlic Toast Sara Lee Blueberry Crumble Breakfast Bread

Brown Sugar Cinnamon Breakfast Bread

Center Split Deli Rolls, White

Cinnamon Breakfast Bread With Raisins

Cinnamon Raisin Bagels

Cinnamon Rolls

Classic Dinner Rolls

Deluxe Bagels, Blueberry

Deluxe Bagels, Cinnamon Raisin

Deluxe Bagels, Plain

Hearty & Delicious 100% Whole Wheat Deli Rolls

Hearty & Delicious Center Split Deli Rolls, White

Honey Wheat Bread

Soft & Smooth 100% Whole Wheat Bread

Soft & Smooth 100% Whole Wheat Hot Dog Buns

Soft & Smooth Hamburger Buns, White

Soft & Smooth Hot Dog Buns, White

Soft & Smooth Wheat Hamburger Buns

White Bread Schmidt Enriched Bread

Enriched Hamburger Rolls, Sliced

Rye Bread

Wheat Rolls

Whole Grain White Bread Select Signatures Spicy Chicken Sliders Shoprite Bangles Whole Wheat

Cinnamon Bread

Country White Bread

Enriched Cinnamon Swirl Bread

Enriched Honey Wheat Bread

Enriched Light Hot Dog Rolls

Enriched Light Wheat Bread

Enriched Round Top White Bread

Garlic Bread Sticks

Garlic Dinner Rolls

Hot Dog Rolls

Italian Bread

Onion Bagels

Poppy Bagels

Potato Hamburger Rolls

Premium Bread

Premium Bread With 100% Stone Ground Wheat

Sandwich White Bread

Sesame Bagels

Sliced Hearth Baked Plain Bagels

Split Top White Bread

Swirl Rye Bread

Texas Toast Garlic

Wheat Bread Simplyaddwater Premium Challah Bread Mix Smucker's Uncrustables Peanut Butter & Grape Jelly Sandwich

Uncrustables Peanut Butter & Grape Spread Sandwich, Reduced Sugar

Uncrustables Peanut Butter & Rasperry Spread Sandwich

Uncrustables Peanut Butter & Strawberry Jam Sandwich

Uncrustables Peanut Butter & Strawberry Spread Sandwich, Reduced Sugar Snacks Iced Honey Buns Storehmann Split Top Wheat Bread

White Bread Sun-Maid Raisin Bread, Cinnamon Swirl Sunbeam Enriched Buns

Grill'n Griddle Bread

Hot Dog Buns

Large, Enriched Bread

Texas Toast Enriched Bread, Thick Sliced Super Bread Giant White Enriched Bread

Hamburger Enriched Buns

Honey Wheat Bread

Hot Dog Enriched Buns

Raisin Bread Tastykake Glazed Honey Buns

Honey Bun

Iced Honey Buns The Bakery At Walmart Glazed Yeast Donuts

Jumbo Croissant Toufayan Bakeries Bagels Blueberry

Cinnamon Raisin

Everything Bagels

Mini Bagels, Cinnamon Raisin

Mini Bagels, Plain

Pre-Sliced Bagels, Whole Wheat

Pre-Sliced Mini Bagels, Whole Wheat Turano Brat & Sausage Rolls

Extra Long French Bread

French Rolls

Gourmet Sandwich Rolls

Italian Bread

Kaiser Rolls

Old Fashioned Italian Bread

Soft Sub Rolls

Wheat French Rolls

Wheat Rolls Tuscan Garden Caesar Gourmet Restaurant Style Croutons Tyson Mini Chicken Sandwiches

Mini Chicken Sandwiches With Cheddar Cheese

Mini Grilled Chicken Sandwiches Unger's Puff Pastry Shells Vachon Carrot Cakes Valu Time Wheat Bread White Enriched Bread Van De Kamp's Enriched Hot Dog Buns Sliced Village Hearth 100% Whole Wheat Bread

Cottage Bread, Wheat

Honey Wheat Bread

Light 12 Grain Bread

Light Italian Bread

Light Wheat Bread

White Brat Buns Weight Watchers Smart Ones English Muffin Sandwich, Canadian Style Bacon

English Muffin Sandwich, Egg Whites & Cheese

Homestyle Turkey Breast With Stuffing White Castle Cheeseburgers

Microwavable Hamburgers White Rose Stuffing Mix Wonder Light Wheat Bread

Potato Hot Dog Buns

Texas Toast Bread

Source: Data provided by FoodEssentials as of 2/27/2014.

* The original version of this report included Nature's Own because its bakery products used to contain ADA. On Feb. 28, 2014, Nature’s Own informed EWG that it had removed ADA from its products in the fall of 2013 and has begun updating its packaging to reflect that change.



A company spokesperson said, "in a few limited markets, some varieties may still have the outdated packaging with ADA listed in the 'one or more of the following' list. However, the products do not contain ADA."

† The original version of this report included Target-branded Archer Farms Simply Balanced 100% Whole Wheat Hamburger Buns. On March 7, 2014, Target informed EWG that this product was discontinued in December 2012. The report has been updated to reflect this information.

** Disclaimer. The conclusions and findings that appear on this page reflect EWG's research at the time of publication stated above. In light of evolving market conditions, subsequent product reformulations, and other factors, they may no longer be current. EWG makes no representations or warranties about any of the products that may appear on this page. EWG hereby disclaims all warranties with regard to any of the products that may appear on this page, including express, statutory, implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular use.