WASHINGTON — A popular whisky is being recalled overseas, but the same product is staying on the shelves in the United States.
Fireball Cinnamon Whisky is being recalled in some European countries — namely Finland, Sweden and Norway — because of an ingredient that is also used as an antifreeze agent.
“Fireball Cinnamon Whisky assures its consumers the product is perfectly safe to drink,” says a press release on the company’s website. “Fireball fans can enjoy their favorite product as they always have.”
Still, the New Orleans company that makes the Sazerac whisky says batches bound for European markets were made with the wrong recipe, which included higher- than-allowed levels of the chemical propylene glycol. Those same levels would be acceptable in the U.S.
Michael Bolger, a senior managing scientist with the company Exponent, says this was a regulatory issue and not a health issue.
“This is a fairly non-toxic chemical,” says Bolger, who spent 35 years at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. “It has a long history of use in foods and in drugs.”
Bolger notes that propylene glycol should not be confused with ethylene glycol, a poisonous substance also used in antifreeze applications.
Sazerac is standing behind its U.S. recipe for Fireball.
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