Pesticide found in oat-based foods like Cheerios, Quaker Oats

A pesticide linked to infertility in animals is showing up in oat-based food products in the U.S., according to CBS News.

A new study by the Environmental Working Group found the pesticide in 92% of oat-based foods tested, including Quaker Oats and Cheerios, according to CBS. The study also detected the chemical in a series of urine samples taken from humans between 2017 and 2023.

The chemical was detected in 77 of 96 samples, CBS said.

The chemical, chlormequat, has been shown to cause reproductive system damage and to disrupt fetal growth in animals in some studies, CBS said. The study’s authors said that raises concern about whether it could also harm people.

The pesticide has not been shown to affect humans the same way, according to Marketwatch.

Chlormequat is only approved for use in the U.S. in ornamental plants like flowers, but the EPA began allowing a certain amount of chlormequat on imported oats and other foods in 2018 and increased the amount in 2020, which is how Americans end up consuming it, according to the Environmental Working Group’s report, Forbes said.

Quaker said it stands by its products and follows “all regulatory guidelines to ensure the safest, highest quality products for our consumers,” according to Forbes.

A spokesperson for General Mills told CBS that all its products also follow all regulatory requirements.

“Food safety is always our top priority at General Mills, and we take care to ensure our food is prepared and packaged in the safest way possible,” the spokesperson said, according to CBS.

The EPA is considering approving chlormequat for use on crops grown in the U.S., according to the agency’s website, Marketwatch said.

In a call for comment on the decision, the agency said there are no dietary, residential or combined risks of concern, according to Marketwatch.