Fight for food safety

The shockwaves caused by the problematic cooking oil recycled from kitchen waste in Taiwan have yet to create ripples on the mainland although it has been revealed that some food made with such oil may have crossed the Straits. Yet, there is no reason for consumers on the mainland to be optimistic about the food safety situation and neither is there any reason for watchdogs to relax their vigilance against substandard or unsafe food products.

The impact this scandal has caused is unprecedented. That thousands of food manufacturers on the island and in the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions are involved is beyond our imagination because mainlanders usually believe supervision over food safety is tighter in these regions.

This scandal again verifies the fact that self-discipline based on conscience is not reliable. The temptation of greater profits can always lead people astray.

Earlier this month, a workshop was discovered in suburban Beijing where pigs' feet were soaked in a hydrogen peroxide solution and caustic soda. This increased their weight and made them look nicer, but made them unsafe to eat.

From problematic baby formula to poisonous duck eggs to chemicals used to feed pigs to make the meat leaner and to problematic cooking oil recycled from kitchen waste and grease from animal skin, as well as the recent scandal of expired meat products used by fast food restaurants, there seems to be no end to the revelations of the lengths unscrupulous producers, dealers and retailers will go to in search of greater profits.

There is no telling what new ways will be conceived to adulterate the food we eat by heartless people who are willing to risk the health and lives at others in their pursuit of personal gain. But it is certain they will find some as long as they think there is more money to make.

This sensational cooking oil scandal in Taiwan should serve as a reminder to the food safety watchdogs that part of their job is to narrow the space that illegal dealers can use to push unsafe or even poisonous foods into the market. It is also a reminder to quarantine officers in customs that quarantine and testing of imported food should never be slackened to allow unsafe food into the domestic market.

There must be unceasing vigilance as it is a battlefield where each piece of ground that is won is of the greatest importance.

Other views

More shocking than the rampancy of gutter oil is the fact that it passed the tests of supervising departments. The scandal calls for a mechanism in which the food we get can be traced back to original producers and ingredient suppliers. The move might involve a huge cost, but it would be worth it because it might save the health of thousands of people.

takungpao.com, Sept 11

Supervision over food must be strictly implemented to ensure its safety, because any single incident might involve the health, even lives, of thousands. But illegal traders are always developing new ways to get bad food past the tests. Therefore, consumers need to raise the alert, as well, and consult experts or call supervisors whenever they sense the food they get is abnormal. Food safety concerns all and needs the cooperation of all.

BeijingNews, Sept 10

The authorities said they tested the gutter oil involved but did not find any problem. According to chemical experts, their tests emphasized the smell, acidity and the percentage of compounds in the sample, but illegal traders can make all these appear normal.

What the authorities need to do is test the percentages of acrylamide and similar carcinogens in the samples, as these increase every time the oil is heated. The illegal traders are improving their technologies and the supervisors need to catch up.

ettoday.net, Sept 12

In Japan and some other countries, only special, authorized agencies may recycle waste grease or kitchen garbage, with clear records of each of their deals, which prevents the oil from returning to the dining table. As early as 2001, Taiwan introduced a law covering waste, but it lacks detailed executable measures concerning waste grease or kitchen garbage. The latest gutter oil incident reveals this is a loop-hole that needs to be filled.

hsw.cn, Sept 12

With the gutter oil scandal being uncovered, Yeh Wen-hsiang, the co-chairman of Chang Guann Co, kneeled at the press conference to apologize and was detained. Many similar scandals have happened on the Chinese mainland, but in very few cases have those involved apologized, let alone been punished by law. We need stricter law enforcement to prevent more food scandals.

Yang Anjin, lawyer, on Sinamicro blog