A little bit ago, I blogged about toxic Oil being used in Chienese restaurants. It was studied and found that China is reusing its cooking oil to the tune of about one-half of one pound per week per person in China. The oil was supposed to be rich in aflotoxin, a cancer causing agent.
Now, the take out boxes from China have been studied, and found that they too will cause cancer. In beijing, it was found that aroudn 30% of the boxes were substandard, so presumably cancer causing.
excerpt:
chinadaily.com
“BEIJING – Next time you say the word da bao (box it) at a restaurant, be aware, you could end up with a life-threatening disease. At least, that’s what an expert in food packaging claims.
According to Dong Jinshi, vice-president of the Hong Kong-based International Food Packaging Association (IFPA), about half of the disposable dishware used in the country are unsafe, with excessive amounts of chemicals that can cause cancer.
The situation in big cities is better, he said, adding that about 30 percent of disposable dishware found in Beijing is substandard.
Dong said his figures are based on a nine-year research project conducted by his association, in addition to some documents from the country’s top quality watchdog – the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine.
The latest case of unsafe disposable dishware Dong’s team detected was on March 3. The researchers visited two famous restaurants – the 170-year-old Laobian dumpling restaurant and the Dong Laishun restaurant – in Beijing and requested some disposable dishware.
The samples were then sent to the Beijing Center for Physical and Chemical Analysis, where tests indicated that the boxes contained excessive amounts of minerals, such as talcum powder and ceresin wax, which contains a substance that can cause cancer.
Zhang Zhisheng, a lawyer from the Beijing Zhongyin Law Firm, confirmed Dong and his team had filed a lawsuit against the two restaurants at the Haidian district people’s court, accusing them of selling poisonous foods.
“This will be the first case in which the newly issued Food Safety Law will come into play in consumer rights protection, Zhang said.
He added: “Consumers might not be willing to go to court for something cheaper than 1 yuan, which partly resulted in the manufacturers’ weak legal consciousness.”