Fungal Bungle (2014)

I was surprised to see an polyene antifungal listed as an ingredient in a package of shredded cheese yesterday. It appears it has been a trend for a while.

With talk of antimicrobial resistance as well as greater awareness of the gut-brain axis, I cannot believe that this is allowed.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency limits its use to the surface of shredded cheese to 10 ppm (1), but if this is enough to suppress fungal growth, this would has effects on the human biome too to some extent.

There is obviously little research at this point to show that natamycin has no long-term effects. So, similar to BPA replacements, it is easy for agencies to conclude that there’s no effect on the human body.

(1) https://inspection.canada.ca/en/food-labels/labelling/indust...