Traces of weedkiller found in 10 Ben & Jerry's flavors

Traces of a chemical used in weedkillers has been found in Ben & Jerry’s ice cream products, according to a report.

The Organic Consumers Association (OCA) reported the finding, claiming to have found glyphosate, the main ingredient in Monsanto's Roundup herbicide, in at least 10 of the popular ice cream companies flavors.

Herbicides, commonly known as weedkillers, are chemical substances toxic to plants used to control vegetation and destroy unwanted plants.

The association found the herbicide in the following flavors: Peanut Butter Cup, Peanut Butter Cookie, Vanilla (two versions), Phish Food, The Tonight Dough, Half Baked, Chocolate Fudge Brownie, Americone Dream and Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough.

Cherry Garcia, the 11th flavor sampled, tested negative for glyphosate.

But according to scientists, the amount is small and well below the legal limit set by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the government agency in charge of setting a ceiling on the amount of glyphosate allowed in food.

One calculation, found by John Fagan, the chief executive of the Health Research Institute Laboratories, which did the testing for the OCA, found that "a 75-pound child would have to consume 145,000 eight-ounce servings a day of Ben & Jerry's Chocolate Fudge Brownie ice cream to hit the limit set by the EPA," the New York Times reported.

Fagan said an adult would have to eat 290,000 servings to hit the agency’s limit.

“Based on these government thresholds, the levels found in Ben & Jerry’s Chocolate Fudge Brownie ice cream would seem totally irrelevant,” Fagon told the Times.

But the OCA is advising Ben & Jerry’s, whose brand is known for environmental advocacy, to transition to using only organic ingredients, including milk, in its products. The organization is urging natural and organic food stores to halt sales of Ben & Jerry’s products until the brand does so.