Tens of thousands of bottles of soft drinks were removed from shop shelves yesterday after concerns that they could contain a potentially cancer-causing chemical.
The Food Standards Agency (FSA), in the UK have found levels of Benzene at nearly three times the World Health Organisation's guideline safety limits in some bottled soft drinks.
The discovery has resulted in tens of thousands of bottles of soft drinks being removed from shop shelves.
A survey of 150 soft drinks was triggered by the discovery of Benzene in soft drinks in America and the contamination was then discovered.
Although the FSA has stressed that the levels found were extremely low and would make a "negligible impact" to people's overall Benzene exposure, there is a legal limit of one part per billion on the amount of Benzene allowed in drinking water.
At present there are no UK restrictions on the amount of the chemical permitted in soft drinks.
The WHO's guideline limits of up to 10 parts per billion were exceeded in four of the drinks tested; a litre bottle of Co-op's low calorie bitter lemon with Benzene at 28ppb; a 330ml Popstar-branded still sugar free lemon and lime drink at 17ppb sold at Aldi; Morrisons own-brand two litre no added sugar pineapple and grapefruit crush at 11ppb; Silver Spring Hyberry one litre high juice, no added sugar, blackcurrant squash at 12ppb.
All the companies have removed the drinks from their shelves.
A further 22, including leading brands, were found to contain levels of Benzene greater than that allowed in tap water.
Apparently tests on one Co-Op drink showed that the levels of Benzene, which is linked with leukaemia and other forms of blood cancer, were 36 times those allowed in tap water.
Some drinks that breach the legal limit for Benzene in tap water, include some of those made by Schweppes, Robinsons, Kia-Ora, Vimto and Lilt, and are still on sale.
Food safety campaigners have demanded that all products with Benzene levels above drinking water be removed from sale until they comply with the tap water standard.
Campaigners say the industry has been aware of the problem for 15 years yet it is only now that consumers are being informed.