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NST : Plastics in food probe: Report these hawkers for action PDF Print E-mail
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Thursday, 10 September 2009 11:43

I REFER to the letter by M.S.R. of Johor Baru ("No action despite complaints" -- NST, March 24) alleging that hawkers fried snacks with their plastic wrappers and that this posed a health risk to consumers.

The Health Ministry is investigating this matter. Samples of frying oil and snacks (for example, fried bananas, keropok lekor) are being analysed by the Chemistry Department.

 Preliminary results do not show the presence of plastic materials. More samples are being analysed and the results will be available soon.

In general, plastics are long-chain polymers to which colourants and other additives are added to control the physical properties of the plastic. Plastic bottles are made of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and plastic straws are made from a formulated blend of polyethylene, plastic resin, colourants and other additives. General toxicity and genotoxicity studies on PET indicate this material does not pose a threat to human health and polypropylene is a safe food-contact plastic material.

However, the colourants, additives, preservatives and plasticisers in the plastic materials are toxic and the public might be at risk if these materials are ingested.

When plastic is heated, it may melt and degrade, releasing all its components, including the plastic mono-mers, into the frying oil.

The ministry would appreciate it if the public could alert health authorities of such negligent practices.

Consumers should exercise their right to boycott the vendors of such food.

 By : NORAINI MOHD OTHMAN, Director, Food Safety and Quality Division Health Ministry

From frying pan into the fire 

THE Consumers Association of Penang is concerned over the recent complaint about a trader at a pasar tani in Larkin, Johor Baru, using plastic in the oil used for preparing potato chips.

This was followed by an earlier report of a trader using plastic in oil when frying pisang goreng in order to keep them crispy.

These cases come hot on the heels of a report where a factory in Kepala Batas was closed down for violating various health regulations, including using recycled oil for cooking and storing cooking oil in unhygienic recycled plastic containers.

We believe these are not isolated cases and is the practice throughout the country.

A study on heated vegetable cooking oil was conducted by a research officer, Dr Tony Ng Kock Wai, of the Institute for Medical Research, and published in the Malaysian Journal of Medicine and Health Sciences in January 2006.

It is understood that deep-frying can give rise to the creation of by-products that are either volatile, such as peroxides and aldehydes, or non-volatile compounds. It is these non-volatile components, or polar compounds, which give rise to health concerns.

The results of this study strongly suggest a link between the long-term consumption of heated vegetable oils that contain 25 per cent of polar compounds with adverse effects on growth and body biochemistry, including raised levels of serum alkaline phosphatase (an indicator of liver function) and traces of albumin in the urine (an indicator for possible kidney damage).

The enlargement of the liver, heart and kidneys was observed.


Dr Ng's study revealed significant adverse effects on pregnancy, including a high number of stillborn births and poor growth prior to weaning. The survival of the maternal animal subjects was also affected significantly.

The symptoms preceding death included an apparent prolonged gestation period, lethargy and extensive uterine haemorrhage

Other researchers have also linked the consumption of heated oils to adverse effects in animals, including retardation in growth, liver damage, diarrhoea and even death.

While results from animal studies cannot always be extrapolated to humans, CAP believes that the findings should give rise to concern and urgent precautionary action.

Dr Ng has highlighted the necessity of using good quality oil, the lowest possible temperatures, frequent oil chan-ges and the removal of black particles from the oil.

We believe that food traders, including hawkers, are not following these practices at all, and, therefore, are putting the public's health at risk.

CAP calls on the Health Ministry to investigate and inform the public on the status of the use of cooking oils and fried food in the country.

As a precautionary measure, it may be necessary for the ministry to advise the public to refrain from eating commercially-prepared fried food until the situation is assessed.

S.M. MOHAMED IDRIS

for Consumers Association of Penang

March 27, 2008 

Food shock: No action despite complaints

I READ with disgust the report on plastics in frying oil. Here, I wish to record what I saw at the pasar tani on Saturdays in Larkin, Johor Baru.

This has been happening since last year.

I was at a stall buying mushrooms when I saw this man at the next stall frying snacks at the back of his stall.

THE Consumers Association of Penang is concerned over the recent complaint about a trader at a pasar tani in Larkin, Johor Baru, using plastic in the oil used for preparing potato chips.

This was followed by an earlier report of a trader using plastic in oil when frying pisang goreng in order to keep them crispy.
 
He was scruffy looking, with a cigarette dangling from his mouth as he dipped a bag of fries in the hot oil.

What was left in his hand was only the top of the bag. The rest of the bag was in the oil.
His ladle for scooping out the fried items had pieces of plastic stuck to it and so did the frying pan.

I was shocked.

He saw me watching him and commenting to the mushroom seller, yet he nonchalantly went on with his work.

I warned friends who were at the stall not to buy from him and his assistants.

My husband and I lodged a complaint with the authorities.

When the Johor Baru City Council had its open day at the same venue last year, I again brought up this issue.

A few weeks later, I received two letters of acknowledgement thanking me for the information and concern.

Both letters assured me that it would take action.

I was impressed and hopeful, but that's as far as they got in taking any action.

To date, there has not been any change.

Every time I am at the pasar tani, this man, who is still selling there, gives me a good hard look, with a smirk on his face as he continues to do what he was doing eight months ago.
 
By : M.S.R., Johor Baru - 24 March 2008
 

Plastics shock: Punish them appropriately

 I REFER to the letter "No action despite complaints" (NST, March 24) which described how some hawkers in Johor Baru, dip potato chips and plastic wrappers into oil.
The authorities need to take this issue seriously as it is a public health hazard.

It is common knowledge that plastics is a factor in cancer-related health risk, more so if absorbed into the body.

These unscrupulous traders should be punished appropriately for putting the public at risk.

We would be grateful if the Health Ministry, together with the Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry, could take action to counter this public health menace.
 
By : TAM YONG YUEE, Muar  - 25 March 2008