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People who say the “Real Housewives” are toxic have no idea how right they are.
Whole Foods has stopped selling former “Real House wives of New York City” star Bethenny Frankel’s Skinnygirl Margarita after discovering it has potentially carcinogenic in gredients.
The drink — which Frankel crows on her Web site is “the margarita you can trust” with “all natural ingredients” and “no preservatives” — actually contains the preservative sodium benzoate, sources said.
Studies have found that the preservative can become carcinogenic if mixed with other substances such as vitamin C.
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In a written statement, Whole Foods said the Skinnygirl Margarita “had been offered in 16 of Whole Foods Market’s 310 stores. After discovering that it contains a preservative that does not meet our quality standards, we have had to stop selling it.”
Frankel — who sold her 2-year-old drink line this past spring for a reported $120 million — shrugged off Whole Foods’ move and her misrepresentations to the public about the lack of preservatives.
“I’m not making wheatgrass here. If I could put an agave plant and some limes on a shelf I would. [The Skinnygirl Margarita] is as close to nature as possible, while still being a shelf-stable product,” the “Bethenny Ever After” star said in a statement to “Access Hollywood.”
She also claimed that Whole Foods didn’t fire her drinks — they quit.
“With all due respect to Whole Foods, we were in a dozen of their stores and have decided not to continue in these stores,” she said. “They represent an infinitesimal fraction of our business. We are, in fact, the fastest growing spirits brand in the US . . . We were bound to piss someone off, and everyone loves to try to tear down a success. This is a non-event.”
It’s unclear how much of the preservative is in the drink.
A rep for Beam Global — which bought Frankel’s line but has kept her involved — said the drink has “extremely low levels” of sodium benzoate and noted that it’s a “very common” preservative.
The company also offered a third version of how the drink came off Whole Foods’ shelves — it said the chain didn’t “pull” the drink, it simply decided not to place any new orders.
Frankel also launched Skinnygirl Sangria last month. A Whole Foods rep says that it sells the concoction in “a couple” of stores and that it is waiting to get the ingredient list before deciding whether to pull it off the shelves as well.
