Umm.. did you READ the report?

Your claim is that the kernels are inherently toxic - the report states that
its the first case since 1979 - some 19 years difference from the report
date!

Lets start banning Dihydrogen Monoxide next!

oy....

> wrote in message
ups.com...
> Yesterday, I purchased Trader Joe's "Fig Cake w/Apricot Kernels" (in a
> 9-ounce round, plastic container), at their store in San Francisco (555
> 9th St.). When I got home, something bothered me about the apricot
> kernels (listed as "raw" on the label)...didn't I read somewhere that
> they contain toxic levels of cyanide (like peach pits)?
>
> So I searched the web, and sure enough, they ARE highly
> poisonous...especially when raw. (And they aren't necessarily safe when
> cooked.) Need proof? Look at these articles:
>
> Acute Cyanide Toxicity Caused By Apricot Kernel Ingestion
>
> http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/q...674&query_hl=1
>
> Nutrition: Raw Food Toxins
>
> http://www.rawveg.info/rawfoodtoxins.html
>
> Quoting from the first article: "A 41-year-old woman ingested apricot
> kernels purchased at a health food store and became weak and dyspneic
> within 20 minutes. The patient was comatose and hypothermic on
> presentation but responded promptly to antidotal therapy for cyanide
> poisoning."
>
> (BTW, "dyspneic" means "Not breathing or able to breathe except with
> difficulty.")
>
> The apricot kernels in this Trader Joe's product are listed as RAW,
> making them the MOST possibly toxic, when compared to cooking them.
> (Though they may STILL be toxic, after cooking.)
>
> I called the store I bought it from, and I hope they take that product
> off the shelves PROMPTLY. (I also contacted Trader Joe's via their main
> phone number, 626-599-3817.
>
> P.S.: Don't get me wrong: I'm a FAN of Trader Joe's...so being the
> bearer of bad news is an unhappy situation for me.
>
> UPDATE: An "Amy" representing Trader Joe's got back to me (via that
> phone number above)...and claimed they are fully cooked, and thus not
> toxic. They have no intent to pull this product from the shelves. I
> told her that, at best, customers will come to believe that raw apricot
> kernels are SAFE to eat. She didn't budge, and thus I'm very, very
> upset. Instead of returning this item for a refund (it was only $1.69),
> I'm keeping it as evidence. See for yourself: go to Trader Joe's at 9th
> & Bryant. You'll find this "Fig Cake with Apricot Kernels" in the
> dried-fruit secion, in a small, clear plastic 9-ounce container.
>