Cancer dye found in food items
p2pnet.net OT News:- Sudan 1 is industrial red dye used to colour leather, gasoline, shoe wax and floor polishes. It’s linked to cancer and has been banned for human consumption.
But Britain’s Food Standards Agency says it’s in hundreds of products shipped to the US, Canada and the Caribbean, as well as to most of Europe.
“Pot Noodle’s advertising slogan ‘It’s dirty and you want it’ was intended to be risqué, witty and controversial,” says the Telegraph. “As the biggest food scare since BSE continued to escalate yesterday, it has also turned out to be surprisingly apt.
It also quotes Dr Bryan Hanley, director of research at Leatherhead Food International, as saying: “It’s nasty stuff. There are a number of legal food dyes, but Sudan 1 is cheap and easy to add and it makes chilli powder – which tends to go brown – look better.”
What food is it in? Click here for This is London’s list.
In the meanwhile, Sundan 1 is in a chilli powder used by Premier Foods to make a Worcester sauce that was then added to food stuffs including soups, sauces and ready meals, says the BBC.
Why wasn’t the food checked?
The UK’s Food Standards Agency (FSA) carries out random checks but says it’s up to suppliers to make sure the food doesn’t contain Sudan I.
Premier Foods said it had been assured the chilli powder was safe to use.
“Italy first raised the alarm two weeks ago but the FSA said it did not become fully aware of the scale of the problem until the weekend of 12 and 13 February,” says the BBC. “It said it spent last week identifying which food products were contaminated before issuing the details …”
Something you think we should know? tips[at]p2pnet.net
===================
See:-
nasty stuff - Contaminated chilli powder is proving very hard to track down, Health Telegraph, February 22, 2005
random checks – Q&A: Sudan I, BBC Online, February 21, 2005
