FDA to probe popcorn link in man's lung disease

By Julie Steenhuysen

CHICAGO (Reuters) - At least one man who ate several bags of butter-flavored microwave popcorn each day has developed a life-threatening lung disease possibly caused by an additive in the popcorn, his doctor says, and U.S. regulators have launched an investigation.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said on Wednesday it received a report from a Denver doctor saying the man has the lung disease similar to an illness affecting workers in plants where microwave popcorn is made, FDA spokesman Michael Herndon said in an e-mailed statement.

"We are currently evaluating the recent information on the association of inhalation of the food additive diacetyl with lung disease, and are carefully considering the safety and regulatory issues it raises," Herndon said.

"This is the first time we're being made aware of a potential consumer case. We're taking (the doctor's) report very seriously," said Bernadette Burden, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

ConAgra Foods Inc, maker of Orville Redenbacher and Act II microwave popcorn brands, said Wednesday it will drop diacetyl from its butter-flavored microwave popcorn in the "near future" to safeguard its employees.

The additive, which gives microwave popcorn a buttery taste, has long been linked with a rare lung disease, bronchiolitis obliterans, found in plant workers.

In April, the CDC said workers at factories that make food flavorings as well as popcorn factories are at risk of contracting the hard-to-treat condition, which causes symptoms such as cough and shortness of breath, but steadily worsens.

ConAgra spokeswoman Stephanie Childs said that after months of deliberations, the company now expects to remove diacetyl "within a year" to protect employees who are exposed to large amounts of the additive.