Arsenic is present in the environment as a naturally occurring element or as a result of contamination from human activity, and is found in either the organic or more toxic inorganic form. In an effort to understand and manage arsenic-related risks associated with the consumption of rice and rice products in the US marketplace, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently (September 2013) released the analytical results for inorganic arsenic in approximately 1,100 new samples of rice and rice products (in addition to the approximately 200 samples that the FDA initially tested and released findings for in September 2012). The FDA concluded that the levels of inorganic arsenic found in its testing were too low to cause immediate or short-term adverse health effects. The FDA’s work going forward will center on long-term risk and ways to manage it with a focus on long-term exposure. Download a copy of the most recent FDA report.