The Domestic Tukeng Sauerkraut Incident And Its Analysis

The theme of the annual 3-15 Gala is: Fairness, Justice and Peace of Mind. This year's 3-15 Gala also featured the "3-15 Information Security Lab" for the first time, which conducted professional tests and issued timely risk warnings on information security hazards that are easily overlooked in consumers' daily lives.

　　This year's 3-15 Gala also featured a number of exposés and reports on serious violations of consumers' rights and interests in various industries, including the "Tukeng Sauerkraut", "Tapioca Vermicelli", "Word of Mouth Control" and "Non-standard Cable".

The incidents of "non-standard cables" have attracted much attention from the community. The Food Partner Network has sorted out the "Dukeng Sauerkraut" incident and interpreted it in the light of relevant reports and regulations for industry reference.

　　1. Overview of the incident

　　On the evening of March 15, CCTV's 3-15 Gala revealed that a number of pickle producers in Yueyang, Hunan Province, had acquired "earth pit pickles", had poor production environments and used food additives in excess of their limits, which seriously affected food safety.

A number of companies, including Jieqi Cuisine and Jinrui Food, also processed sauerkraut products for many well-known brands, and also processed old-tan sauerkraut packets for some instant noodle companies.

　　The company has won the government procurement project entrusted by Hunan Tuojiang Agricultural Development Co Ltd and has also been selected as one of the seventh batch of National Key Leading Enterprises in Agricultural Industrialisation.

However, the pickled vegetables from the company's standardised pickling pool were used to process export products, and the pickled vegetables in the old pickled vegetable packets were acquired from outside "earth pit pickled vegetables".

　

　The investigation found that workers will not wash the mustard into the pit, add water, salt, etc., wrapped in film, covered with soil directly pickled. After pickling, manufacturers would come here one after another to buy the sauerkraut. The workers, some in slippers and some barefoot, step on the sauerkraut.

After being hauled to the factory, the sauerkraut was piled up haphazardly on the floor in a filthy production environment. Such sauerkraut was cleaned, chopped, mixed, packaged and sterilised by machines, and then made into old-fashioned sauerkraut buns.

The companies involved do not test the hygiene indicators when they acquire these sauerkraut. The investigation into local sauerkraut producers also found that the companies were outspoken about the excessive use of preservatives and colour protectors, up to 10 times over the limit.

The various companies involved have also made official statements to clear the air.

The use of "clay pits" for pickled vegetables may have excessive nitrites, preservatives and environmental hygiene standards, endangering people's health. At the same time, salt is used to make sauerkraut in "clay pits", and if the operation is not standardised, a large amount of salt water will seep into the ground, polluting the groundwater and the surrounding soil environment, which may also violate the Environmental Protection Act and other regulations.

　　Ruan Guangfeng, Director of the Business Department of Kexin Food and Nutrition Information Exchange Centre

　　Sulphur dioxide is also a food additive in the food industry and is very widely used. Sulphur dioxide can be used in many food products. For example, it is utilised in the preservation of fruits, edible mushrooms, bamboo shoots, yams and other vegetables or in processing methods such as peeling and cutting, etc. It is used for preserving, sterilising and preserving freshness.

Sulphur dioxide can also be used to protect the colour of dried fruits and vegetables, which can be made brighter through the appearance of coloured dried fruits and vegetables after sulphur fumigation.

The safe intake limit for sulphur dioxide set by the Joint International Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA) and the World Health Organisation (WHO) is no more than 0.7 mg per kg of body weight per day; for a 60 kg adult, this equates to 42 mg per day.