Thursday, August 28, 2014

Dozens Arrested for Adulterating over 30,000 Tons of Chicken Feet

8/28/2014

BEIJING – Chinese police have confiscated over 30,000 tons of chicken feet – considered a delicacy in the Asian country – and have arrested 35 people for adulterating the product with hydrogen peroxide, the official Xinhua agency reported on Wednesday.

The chicken feet were submerged in hydrogen peroxide to give them a whitish color, making them appear fresh.

Following the discovery of an adulterated shipment in the eastern Chinese province of Zhejiang, police operations were launched in 10 administrative divisions of the country, leading to the arrests.

Hydrogen peroxide is an antiseptic normally used in first-aid, but its consumption in high doses can cause stomach and mouth problems, besides diarrhea and vomiting.

Chinese police said several of their raids ended in failure after information leaked to the press, which allowed those involved to flee and go into hiding.

Scandals are common in China’s food processing industry, which have led to a growing concern among consumers regarding the safety of what they eat.

It has become common for consumers to buy imported food products even if they are more expensive.

Adulteration especially takes place in the dairy sector, where one of the biggest scandals broke out in 2008, when milk for babies laced with melanin affected over 300,000 children, killing six.

Six executives of a meat processing company were recently detained for selling rotten meat to fast-food outlets in a scandal that broke out in July and forced companies like McDonald’s to withdraw items on their menu.


source

No comments:

Post a Comment