Thursday, January 31, 2008

Poison fear over Chinese dumplings


In Japan this week, dumplings imported from China have been recalled after they were found to contain deadly pesticides. It leaves China once again on the defensive after yet further worries over product safety. Japan currently tests around 10% of all food imports from China, twice that of those tested in the US, but it was only after people began falling sick that the product recall was announced. The company behind the manufacture of the dumplings has been named as Hebei Foodstuffs Import & Export Group. Chinese authorities said Thursday they were investigating the company that made insecticide-tainted dumplings which have made at least 10 people ill in Japan [China Post]. But China has defended its latest product to come under fire saying there were no traces of chemicals in the product. According to the China Post the product showed no traces of anything that might have caused the illnesses but further investigations would continue. In 2004, the company had to recall a batch of its meat products from Japan after the discovery of excessive amounts of escherichiacoli, which can cause diarrhea. But the company said that could have been caused by problems in storage or transportation [CNN / BBC]

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