Carrageenan Backlash: Food Firms Are Ousting A Popular Additive

Erick Ask still remembers the first time he heard about the food ingredient that would become the focus of his professional life. He was in ninth grade.

"Mr. Elslip, my biology teacher, said to us one day, 'How many of you have eaten seaweed?' " Ask recalls. "And nobody raised their hand. And he says, 'Well, how many of you have eaten ice cream?' And we all raised our hands. And he says, 'Well, then you have eaten seaweed!' "

Mr. Elslip was talking about a substance derived from seaweed called carrageenan. His claim was't completely accurate; it isn't in all ice cream. But it's certainly in some brands. It's also used in a range of other food products, from infant formula to meats and certain beverages. 

Now, it's starting to disappear, at least from a few of those foods. A committee that proposes rules for the organic food industry just voted to ban it from organic products. The shift is driven by pressure from activist groups that believe, based on a handful of studies, that carrageenan is linked to health problems.