Clipping Board » Illness Enters through Mouth ─ The information that has been made public is often just the tip of the iceberg...
Business Today, May 15, 2013
A typical office worker’s day is filled with tempting food—fast breakfasts, lunchbox meals, and popular street snacks from night markets. However, studies show that these delicious foods may expose people to over a dozen food additives in a single day. Amid our accustomed lifestyle, health risks are quietly creeping in...
Following the scandal of toxic plasticizers, *Business Today* conducted investigations in major night markets across Taiwan, including Taipei’s Shilin and Taichung’s Fengjia. Samples of seasonings obtained from food vendors were sent for testing, revealing that many commonly consumed foods contain banned toxic chemicals. Beyond industrial starch found in items like *liang yuan* (chilled glutinous rice balls), the investigation uncovered cheap chemical soy sauce used by buffet restaurants, street vendors, and even formal eateries. Priced at just one-fifth of competitors, this soy sauce dominates the market nationwide. Due to its "affordable quality," the manufacturer even "supervises production" for other barrel-packaged soy sauces. Animal tests confirm that toxins in this chemical soy sauce can cause convulsions and hyperactivity, with high consumption potentially leading to leukemia and lung cancer.
Today, *Business Today* released its findings on "deadly food ingredients." Aside from unscrupulous manufacturers adding industrial starch to *liang yuan*, two chemicals—4-methylimidazole (4MEI) and 3-monochloropropane-1,2-diol (3-MCPD)—were detected in soy sauce specifically marketed to night market vendors. 4MEI, a component of caramel coloring that gives food a yellowish-brown hue, has previously been found in cola. Wu Jia-Cheng, a toxicology expert and chemistry professor at National Taiwan University who participated in *Business Today*’s "Safeguarding National Cuisine" initiative, stated, "This is a potent carcinogen. When used in night markets for marinating or braising, it leaves carcinogenic residues in the food."
3-MCPD, a byproduct of chemical soy sauce production, is regulated by Taiwan’s Department of Health to not exceed 0.4 ppm. "Our health regulations are relatively lenient. This compound has strong genotoxic effects. Animal studies show it attacks genes, causing cell mutations—the starting point of cancer," Wu emphasized. In Europe, a well-known soy sauce brand was once pulled from shelves after testing positive for 3-MCPD.
To trace the source of this hazardous soy sauce, *Business Today*’s investigative team tracked down the manufacturer. They discovered the original company had dissolved in 2008, only to re-register under a new name. Further checks revealed the factory had four different registered addresses, one of which was merely a residential property. After relentless pursuit, the team finally located the production site in a remote mountainous area of Wugu District, New Taipei City.
The deception doesn’t stop at soy sauce. In its latest issue, *Business Today* reports on a veteran banquet chef who disclosed that tight budgets force vendors to deliver "cheap yet lavish" meals. For instance, clients demanding a NT$10,000-per-table feast for just NT$5,000 receive dishes featuring lobster, mullet roe, scallops, and abalone—often counterfeit. Many lobster heads seen at banquets are recycled from previous events.
Another seasoned chef admitted to *Business Today* that he once struggled to master dishes like melt-in-the-bone *congshao jiyu* (braised crucian carp) or *nanbanzuke ayu* (sweet and sour marinated sweetfish), until a mentor revealed that adding glacial acetic acid could achieve the effect in just 25 minutes. Similarly, smoked duck, which typically requires precise sugar, moisture, heat, and timing, can be quickly prepared with just a bottle of "smoke flavoring oil."Even the master chefs always earnestly warn, "This is for the customers to eat, you'd better not have too much!"
Editor's Note: This article is excerpted from the cover story "Deadly Terrifying Ingredients" in the May 15 issue of *Business Today* No. 856. Related reports in the same issue include: "This Is Made for Customers—The Chef Told Me Never to Eat It!", "Government's Weak Management Leaves the Entire Nation in a Delicious Crisis", "Self-Protection for Ordinary Citizens: Four Steps to Stay Away from Food Additives". For more details, please refer to this issue of *Business Today*.
Source: http:/ / tw. news. yahoo. com/ % E9……3% 9F% E6% 9D% 90- 033949886. html
Toxic Soy Sauce Endangers Taiwan! "Business Today" Exposes Horrifying Ingredients
A typical office worker’s day is filled with tempting food—fast breakfasts, lunchbox meals, and popular street snacks from night markets. However, studies show that these delicious foods may expose people to over a dozen food additives in a single day. Amid our accustomed lifestyle, health risks are quietly creeping in...
Following the scandal of toxic plasticizers, *Business Today* conducted investigations in major night markets across Taiwan, including Taipei’s Shilin and Taichung’s Fengjia. Samples of seasonings obtained from food vendors were sent for testing, revealing that many commonly consumed foods contain banned toxic chemicals. Beyond industrial starch found in items like *liang yuan* (chilled glutinous rice balls), the investigation uncovered cheap chemical soy sauce used by buffet restaurants, street vendors, and even formal eateries. Priced at just one-fifth of competitors, this soy sauce dominates the market nationwide. Due to its "affordable quality," the manufacturer even "supervises production" for other barrel-packaged soy sauces. Animal tests confirm that toxins in this chemical soy sauce can cause convulsions and hyperactivity, with high consumption potentially leading to leukemia and lung cancer.
Today, *Business Today* released its findings on "deadly food ingredients." Aside from unscrupulous manufacturers adding industrial starch to *liang yuan*, two chemicals—4-methylimidazole (4MEI) and 3-monochloropropane-1,2-diol (3-MCPD)—were detected in soy sauce specifically marketed to night market vendors. 4MEI, a component of caramel coloring that gives food a yellowish-brown hue, has previously been found in cola. Wu Jia-Cheng, a toxicology expert and chemistry professor at National Taiwan University who participated in *Business Today*’s "Safeguarding National Cuisine" initiative, stated, "This is a potent carcinogen. When used in night markets for marinating or braising, it leaves carcinogenic residues in the food."
3-MCPD, a byproduct of chemical soy sauce production, is regulated by Taiwan’s Department of Health to not exceed 0.4 ppm. "Our health regulations are relatively lenient. This compound has strong genotoxic effects. Animal studies show it attacks genes, causing cell mutations—the starting point of cancer," Wu emphasized. In Europe, a well-known soy sauce brand was once pulled from shelves after testing positive for 3-MCPD.
To trace the source of this hazardous soy sauce, *Business Today*’s investigative team tracked down the manufacturer. They discovered the original company had dissolved in 2008, only to re-register under a new name. Further checks revealed the factory had four different registered addresses, one of which was merely a residential property. After relentless pursuit, the team finally located the production site in a remote mountainous area of Wugu District, New Taipei City.
The deception doesn’t stop at soy sauce. In its latest issue, *Business Today* reports on a veteran banquet chef who disclosed that tight budgets force vendors to deliver "cheap yet lavish" meals. For instance, clients demanding a NT$10,000-per-table feast for just NT$5,000 receive dishes featuring lobster, mullet roe, scallops, and abalone—often counterfeit. Many lobster heads seen at banquets are recycled from previous events.
Another seasoned chef admitted to *Business Today* that he once struggled to master dishes like melt-in-the-bone *congshao jiyu* (braised crucian carp) or *nanbanzuke ayu* (sweet and sour marinated sweetfish), until a mentor revealed that adding glacial acetic acid could achieve the effect in just 25 minutes. Similarly, smoked duck, which typically requires precise sugar, moisture, heat, and timing, can be quickly prepared with just a bottle of "smoke flavoring oil."Even the master chefs always earnestly warn, "This is for the customers to eat, you'd better not have too much!"
Editor's Note: This article is excerpted from the cover story "Deadly Terrifying Ingredients" in the May 15 issue of *Business Today* No. 856. Related reports in the same issue include: "This Is Made for Customers—The Chef Told Me Never to Eat It!", "Government's Weak Management Leaves the Entire Nation in a Delicious Crisis", "Self-Protection for Ordinary Citizens: Four Steps to Stay Away from Food Additives". For more details, please refer to this issue of *Business Today*.
Source: http:/ / tw. news. yahoo. com/ % E9……3% 9F% E6% 9D% 90- 033949886. html