The Department of Health (DOH)(衛生署) is trying to track down a poisonous food additive sold by a chemical company to unwitting (不知情的) makers of beverages and foodstuffs after ordering the removal of contaminated products from store shelves. (下令遭毒害的產品全面下架)
According to a local news source, this is the world's first case of foods and beverages being laced with (被攙有少量的) the plasticizer (塑化劑) Di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate, commonly abbreviated as DEHP. DEHP is a carcinogen 致癌物and can also disrupt the endocrine system and change hormone levels. (擾亂內分泌及荷爾蒙系統)
In the meantime, prosecutors are questioning Lai Chun-chieh (賴俊傑), manager of Yu Shen Company (昱伸公司), which has been manufacturing the additive for a long time. According to sources, the company's monthly sales total NT$3 million. Lai, 57, was in police custody but had not been charged with any crime as of press time.
Protecting the Consumer
DOH ordered on Friday, May 20, that beverages and foodstuffs laced with the additive be removed from store shelves nationwide, that consumers be refunded, and that all such unsold beverages and foodstuffs be impounded and destroyed. (被扣押銷毀)
Total consumption of DEHP by public and private organizations came to more than 200 metric tons last year, according to DOH, which is trying to find out how much found its way to the food industry. (找出多少流入食品業) On May 19, Changhua County seized 127 barrels (25 kg each) of emulsifiers laced with plasticizers (攙有塑化劑的乳化劑) and about 10,000 kg of food product mixes from four food processing companies in Changhua County, Taichung City and New Taipei City.
Carcinogen's Harmful Effects
According to media reports, the said additive, which contains the cancer-causing plasticizer DEHP, has been used as a substitute for palm oil, a legal ingredient but five-times more expensive, in the manufacture of an emulsifier. DEHP, an organic compound, is described as a cost effective general-purpose plasticizer which is used mainly for making plastic and PVC soft and pliable. While emulsifiers are a legitimate ingredient of food additives, plasticizers are not. (乳化劑/起雲劑) 是合法食品添加劑但塑化劑不是) Emulsifiers are added to sports drinks and fruit juices to give them a “clouded”and “rich” look. 乳化劑是被用來添加於運動飲料和果汁使飲料有濃稠的口感)
Affected beverages and foodstuffs include fruit juices, jellies, yogurt drinks and yogurt tablets sold under such popular brands as Dahu Strawberry Farm, Sunkist, Taiwan Yes and others. The highest concentration found in these beverages and foodstuffs is 30 parts per million (ppm). An intake of 500 cc of such drinks could leave in the body enough of the agent to exceed the permissible amount in a 60-kg adult.
Young Energy Source Co., Ltd., maker of Taiwan Yes products, yesterday apologized to the public for its negligence in a press conference and in public statements published in the Chinese-language press. The company also told consumers to return the products they had bought for unconditional refunds. 無條件退費
Aside from causing cancer, long-time accumulation of DEHP in the human body could lead to feminization, said an official with the DOH's Food and Drug Administration (FDA). As such, women pregnant with male babies and boys in puberty among regular consumers of such products stand to be affected most, according to the FDA official.
However, according to Li Chun-chang, a professor with National Chengkung University, DEHP is a dangerous carcinogen, but would not accumulate if intake stops. Only long-term observation could determine whether a person's endocrine system has been affected, Li said, adding a urine test could readily reveal the amount of DEHP accumulated in the body. http://www.chinapost.com.tw/taiwan/national/national-news/2011/05/25/303658/DOH-tracing.htm
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