Health : EPA Targets Apple Enhancer

In the latest development in a decade-old controversy, the Environmental Protection Agency today proposed a ban on a popular chemical used to make apples appear more appealing and to increase shelf life, citing “an inescapable and direct” link to cancer.

The EPA, however, stopped short of ordering the chemical, which is marketed under the trade name Alar, immediately off the market because it said it does not consider the health risk severe enough for such action. The rule review process could take 18 months, it said.