In a study released in March 2009 the CDC states that it found perchlorate in 15 powdered baby formulas. Perchlorate is a chemical that is used to create jet fuel, and it is known to cause thyroid disease. The report also states that perchlorate was found in all brands of powdered formula, but it was exceptionally higher in milk derived from cows. The levels of perchlorate found were in most cases were under the EPAs danger zone of 4 to 18 ppb, but in at least one test it was in that range. Combining this formula with contaminated water would push this well into the EPA limit. We should also keep in mind that this exposure range is what the EPA thinks is bad levels of perchlorate to a grown human, not a new born baby with a developing brain. The problem with this report, and how the the main stream media handled it was that they both refused to release which brands contained the the highest amounts of the poison.

So I read the report and found two things that really stood out:

First the journal states: “Perchlorate has been detected in drinking water from 5.4% of US utilities in at least 26 states and 2 territories“. Let me think about this… 5.4% of water sources in the United States are contaminated with the poison, but they find perchlorate in all formula? This meaning that all powdered baby formula plants (if being contaminated by local water supplies) are at one of the 5.4% water sources that have the poison in it. I think the odds come out to be 5.4% to the 4th power which is .00085%… not very likely.

Second the journal states: “It is also interesting to note that according to the United States Department of Agriculture’s Economic Research Service, in 2000 (the latest year for which data were available), Brands D and E in Table 3 commanded 87% of the PIF market share”. This is “interesting” in more than one way. First if you look at the table it is talking about brands D & E have the highest perchlorate concentrations which in at least one case 5X the the amount that the brand with the least concentration contains. Second if you look at the report Infant Formula Prices and Availability: Final Report to Congress” it shows that these two brands are Ross (Now strictly Abbott Labs) that make Similac which is at 35% market share, and Mead Johnson creators of Enfamil that has 52% of market share.

There are only 4 manufactures of formula in the US, two of them we listed above, the other two are Carnation (Nestle) and PBM who mainly creates store branded type formulas. So using logic we see that these are the two brands with low levels of perchlorate.

Several months after this perchlorate report in April 2009 PBM files law suit against the Mead Johnson company over false advertising clams. That suit claimed Mead Johnson sent out mailers saying “Enfamil LIPILs unique formulation is not available in any store brands”.  To this claim PBM said that the ingredients were identical, and that they were “sourced from the same supplier”. In December PBM wins the lawsuit proving the fact that the formulas are made not only of the same ingredients, but received from the same supplier. So if PBM is one of the formulas that contains a fraction of perchlorate that Enfamil contains, but they are made from the same ingredient stock that would mean that something unique to the Enfamil production plant is introducing the poison into the product.

The next logical step would be to look at the water supplies in the area where the manufacturing plants are, and cross reference them to government maps that show where the poison is contaminating water.

Abbott Labs, makers of Similac, have 5 plants in the US: Columbus Ohio, Sturgis Michigan, Altavista Virginia, Casa Grande Arizona, and Fairfield California. The Arizona, and California sites are close to spill/positive test areas, but the other sites are not. The problem with Similac is that I do not have any thing that says they have the same supplier as PBM and Mead Johnson.

Looking at Mead Johnson’s website mjn.com under careers you can see the two “manufacturing facilities” which are Evansville Indiana and Zeeland Michigan. Doing a cross reference with the site locations, and maps the government has on perchlorate testing & contamination shows that Indiana is one of the states that has not tested positive for the chemical, and even though Michigan has tested positive, it was on the other side of the state from Zeeland.

So where is the perchlorate coming from? A statement on Mead Johnson’s website Information About Perchlorate they state “perchlorate can be present in the environment, drinking water, and the food supply, and consequently trace levels may be found in infant formula”. So we have evidence that it is not from the food supply Mead Johnson is using since PBM uses the same ingredient source but has lower levels. We have also disproved that it is from the water since Mead Johnson MFG plants are no where near contaminated water sites. If Mead Johnson’s water supply and supplier are both clear of perchlorate contamination where is it coming from? This leaves the final contamination source to be “environment” as Mead Johnson calls it, or as I would call it, their manufacturing plant.

What has come of this study? Doing a search for “perchlorate” on Similac & Enfamil’s website produces wording of no matching results for my request. I guess they were not to concerned by the report. This looks like a eugenics operation to me, the two biggest brands that everyone gets on WIC vouchers? They screw up your thyroid gland with perchlorate laced baby formula, and then when you are older and your body is jacked you can buy their pharmaceuticals that do the opposite of what it is supposed to — like anti-depressants that make you want to go and kill your self, or cervical cancer shots that give you cervical cancer.

CDC Report: http://www.nature.com/jes/journal/v20/n3/full/jes200918a.html#bib34

Perchlorate Map/Report: http://www.awwa.org/files/Advocacy/PerchlorateOccurrenceReportFinalb02092005.pdf

PBM sues Mead Johnson over false advertisement claims: WIC Formula Report: http://www.ers.usda.gov/publications/efan02001/efan02001d.pdf

Mead Johnson sued over advertising: http://industry.bnet.com/advertising/10001876/mead-johnson-sued-a-3rd-time-over-alleged-false-baby-formula-ads/

Mead Johnson Does Not Care About Perchlorate Contamination: http://mjn.com/app/iwp/MJN/Content2.do?dm=mj&id=/MJN_Home2/mjnBtnNews2/mjnBtnNutritionNews/09Perchlorate&iwpst=MJN&ls=0&csred=1&r=3446492430

EPA chemical facts on perchlorate: http://www.epa.gov/fedfac/documents/perchlorate_qa.htm