Fact Check

Was AriZona Tea Exposed by the FDA for Using Human Urine in Products?

Reports of cans of Arizona Iced Tea contaminated by human waste products were fake news.

Published April 20, 2015

 (Sheila Fitzgerald / Shutterstock.com)
Image Via Sheila Fitzgerald / Shutterstock.com
Claim:
The FDA recently discovered that the Arizona Beverage Company uses human urine in many of their products.

On 19 April 2015, the Huzlers web site published an article reporting that the Arizona Beverage Company was using human urine in many of their AriZona Tea products:

Upon being unexpectedly inspected a few days ago, FDA inspectors visited five of AriZona's biggest factories in the United States and what they discovered was shocking. They discovered thousands of gallons of large industrial containers containing human urine. But what was the urine doing in an AriZona tea factory? According to the FDA, urine has been suspected to be used in AriZona products for a years and it is what gives it its signature flavor, surprisingly. About 6% of AriZona cans are made up of human urine.

This report could be debunked simply by checking its source: Huzlers, a well known fake news site.

Huzlers posts made-up stories about a variety of topics, such as the fictitious tale of a man selling his 4-year-old for a new Apple Watch, but they have a penchant for publishing fake news about the FDA. In September 2014, they penned a hoax article about cocaine in cans of Coors Light beer, and in October 2014 they published a fake story about semen being found in Starbucks Frappuccinos.

A disclaimer at the bottom of the web site's pages states that Huzlers is "the most notorious urban satirical entertainment website with the most shocking headlines and articles."

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