Trader Joe's: No Reason to Believe the Wines We Offer Are Unsafe

By Renee Schiavone | Patch Editor

On the heels of news that a lawsuit has been filed in California alleging that dozens of popular, inexpensive brands of wine contain “dangerously high” levels of the “highly toxic poison” arsenic, many questions have arisen.

What does this mean to me? What wines are involved? Will the stores pull these wines?

Though we certainly can’t answer all those questions, here’s some information that may help you:

• Tainted Wine List: The List of Alleged Arsenic-Poisoned Wines

• Arsenic-Tainted Wine - Overkill or a Real Killer?

Now, it’s important to know that at this point, this entire case is based on the allegations made by one group. Still, the social media world has responded en masse with their concerns.

“... Just a glass or two of these arsenic-contaminated wines a day over time could result in dangerous arsenic toxicity to the consumer,” a complaint filed by Kabateck Brown Kellner, LLP states.

But what about the stores that sell these wines?

Trader Joe’s is perhaps one of the most well-known distributors with wine named in the complaint. Its popular Charles Shaw wines often are bought by the caseload by customers seeking a great deal on the “two buck Chuck.” Trader Joe’s has stores in Orland Park, Naperville, Batavia, Oak Park, La Grange, Downers Grove, Glen Ellyn, Northbrook, Libertyville, Algonquin, Evanston, Glenview, Park Ridge and Chicago.

Patch reached out to the Monrovia, Calif.-based company for comment. Trader Joe’s said it’s investigating the matter with wine suppliers.

“We will not offer any product we feel is unsafe. Ever. We have no reason to believe the wines we offer are unsafe, including Charles Shaw White Zinfandel,” spokeswoman Rachel Broderick told Patch via email Friday afternoon.

She continued:

“Because there are no US governmental standards for arsenic in wine, here are standards from around the world, for context:

In Canada, the limit for Total Arsenic in wine is 100 parts-per-billion.

The International Organization of Vine and Wine (OIV) is a Paris-based, intergovernmental organization comprised of 45 different wine-producing countries dealing with technical and scientific aspects of viticulture and winemaking. One of the activities of OIV is the compilation of global statistics within its field. The OIV limit for Total Arsenic in wine is 200 parts-per-billion.”

According to a laboratory that analyzes wine who was interviewed by CBS News, Charles Shaw White Zinfandel contained 31 parts-per-billion of arsenic when tested.

The EPA’s standard for arsenic in drinking water is currently 10 parts-per-billion.

Patch has yet to hear back from other wineries named in the suit, but will continue to follow up as this story develops.

(Image via Shutterstock)