China Bans Lye, Boric Acid & Formaldehyde, Among Other Food Additives - AP

[hatrack]

I feel safer already! :eyes:

Substances commonly used as industrial dyes, insecticides and drain cleaners were included on a list of illegal food additives China released Monday as part of a monthslong government crackdown aimed at improving the country's shoddy food safety record.

The list of 17 banned substances was released by a government committee tasked with weeding out the practice of augmenting food products with nonfood additives. Local authorities were also warned to watch out for another 10 food additives that are often used excessively. "This list provides clues for relevant departments as they carry out this campaign," said a statement posted on the Ministry of Health Web site, adding that the list was not comprehensive.

The government had previously banned some of the 17 substances as separate scandals rocked the country and raised concerns over products such as milk and eggs, but this was China's first compiled list of illegal additives.

Among the banned additives was boric acid, commonly used as an insecticide, which is mixed with noodles and meatballs to increase elasticity, the statement said. Also forbidden was industrial formaldehyde and lye, used in making soap and drain cleaner and added to water used to soak some types of dried seafood to make the products appear fresher and bigger. Also on the list were various industrial dyes that are added to improve the appearance of food products, ranging from chili powder to tea to cooked meats.



EDIT

http://www.taiwannews.com.tw/etn/news_content.php?id=814206&lang=eng_news&cate_img=logo_world&cate_rss=WORLD_eng

[aquart]

1. TEA?????

Now we can't trust TEA?

[Sanity Claws]

2. No lye?

How are the Chinese going to enjoy Lutefisk?

[soothsayer]

3. Or good German pretzels, yum!

[XemaSab]

4. My first thought exactly!

:cry:

My second thought: if the Chinese could shit in a box and sell it to Americans, they would. Or maybe they already do. :scared:

[Nihil]

5. I'd go for your second thought ...

... but now they've got to stop eating lye, formaldehyde and other such
"nutrients" before they do so ...
:wow:

[Javaman]

6. Subject: Petrolium oil in Twinkies...

From a Chinese Oil Refinery To Your Twinkie: Food Makers Don’t Often Know Where The Chemicals In Their Products Come From

http://www.worldproutassembly.org/archives/2007/05/from_a_chinese.html

When I began researching the ingredients for Twinkies, I naively thought that their raw materials were extracted from nuts, beans, fruit, seeds or leaves, and that they came from the United States. I was looking to link places with foods — along the lines of California wine or Maine lobster, but for thiamine mononitrate. It turned out that I was way off.

Although eight of the ingredients in the beloved little snack cake come from domestic corn and three from soybeans, there are others — including thiamine mononitrate — that come from petroleum. Chinese petroleum. Chinese refineries and Chinese factories. And there are other unexpected ingredients that are much harder to trace. So much for the great “All-American” snack food.


Like many other industries, food additives have been off-shored. No major domestic vitamin or sorbic acid manufacturers remain in the U.S. Our last vitamin C plant closed in 2005 — in fact, it closed as I was speaking to an employee about a tour — and most of our artificial colors and flavors come from abroad as well. Our chemical industry is rapidly dismantling its expensive domestic plants and either forming joint ventures with Chinese companies or simply buying chemicals from them. This leads to lower food and pharmaceutical prices, but perhaps at the cost of quality control.