US authorities suspected the use of a fungicide may have caused liver tumours in animals.

Traces of the fungicide carbendazim were identified last month in orange products from Brazil, after Coca-Cola, which owns the juice manufacturer Minute Maid, told the US Food and Drug Administration that some Brazilian growers had sprayed trees with the chemical.

Up to 35 parts per billion were found in juice arriving in the US, where carbendazim is banned. Australia imports 32,000 tonnes of frozen concentrate orange juice annually, two-thirds of which comes from Brazil.

Carbendazim is used to control fungal disease, which makes fruit look less appealing but does not affect its taste.

The authority will now test the entire US orange juice supply, with results expected within a week.

A preliminary assessment by the US Environmental Protection Agency has found the low levels of carbendazim to date do not pose a health risk.

A spokeswoman for Food Standards Australia said the acceptable level for carbendazim residue in Australia was 10 parts per million.

This was well above the acceptable level in Europe of 200 parts per billion. In the US no trace is permitted.

Food Standards Australia said the amounts discovered in the US remained well below the Australian maximum, which was not a safety limit but related to ''the appropriate use of the chemical'' in agriculture.

The chief executive of Fruit Juice Australia, Geoff Parker, said Australian carbendazim limits were consistent with World Health Organisation standards.

Mr Parker said supply fluctuated too much for juice companies to label the origin of imported oranges.

Use of carbendazim on local citrus fruit has been banned since January 2010, after a review by the Australian Pesticides Authority.