There is growing dissatisfaction in the scientific community about the ability to predict human cancer rates from animal data. A further complication in using soft data is the amazing increase in the sensitivity of chemical analysis. Thirty years ago, parts per million was a good analysis. Twenty years ago, parts per billion was considered adequate. At measurements that fine, most people are carrying cocaine around in their wallets because traces of the drug have been found on currency.
Different interpretations translate into protests that raise the level of public outrage.
An environmental organization may interpret risks in a given situation to be as high as possible to get maximum publicity, while a food company with a sophisticated food safety program may get zero public exposure. Trade associations and academic groups would be somewhere in the middle. The report was based on a worst case scenario and on data which had been discredited and discarded by regulatory agencies. The report was featured on CBS' 60 Minutes . Articles appeared in major newspapers and magazines in the following days.