Cancer-causing chemicals found in soy sauce

（附譯文）

by SEANPOULTER, Daily Mail

Cancer-causing chemicals have been found in nearly one in four samples of soy sauce and other Chinese flavourings tested by food watchdogs, it was announced yesterday.

In some, the levels massively exceeded international safety limits while others contained traces of a banned toxic substance.

Yesterday officials issued a 'hazard alert' and demanded that supermarket shelves be cleared of the products and that consumers and caterers throw out the offending brands.

The list also includes varieties of oyster sauce, mushroom sauce and a chicken marinade. All are likely to be used in Chinese or Thai restaurants.

Virtually all the brands involved were imported from Thailand, China, Taiwan and Hong Kong, and sold through specialist Chinese supermarkets. None of those sold by major retailers contained the chemicals.

The Food Standards Agency, which carried out the tests, believes the most likely buyers will be Chinese and Thai restaurants and families from Eastern and South East Asian backgrounds.

It stressed that occasional users were unlikely to be harmed but there was concern for people consuming high levels of the products.

The samples involved in the survey of 100 products were collected more than five months ago.

Explaining the delay in publishing the findings, the FSA said it had to run a detailed analysis, contact importers and trace the history of consignments. The chemical 3-MCPD is considered so dangerous that the EU will not allow any more than the tiniest amount in food - just 0.02 mg per kg.

Yet one of the products, sold under the brand name Golden Mountain, contained close to 5,000 times that figure. Just two teaspoons would be equivalent to 20 times the acceptable daily intake recommended for a woman.

The survey also revealed traces of an even more harmful chemical, 1,3-DCP, which is banned from all food because it is toxic to genes, as well as carcinogenic.

Some 24 of the 100 samples were positive for 3-MCPD and two thirds of these had traces of 1,3-DCP. The two are thought to create a higher risk of liver cancer.

FSA deputy chairman Suzi Leather said: 'Soy sauce can be produced without these chemicals and we expect swift action from the industry to ensure that the planned EU legal limits are met.' The shops the FSA tested were concentrated in Leeds, Manchester, London and Cambridge. However the brands are likely to be available nationwide .

The products carried the brand names Golden Mountain, King Imperial, Pearl River Bridge, Jammy Chai, Golden Mark, Kimlan, Lee Kum Kee, Tung Chun, Sinsin and Golden Swan.

Some of the makers and importers have claimed that they were the victims of counterfeiters.

【譯文】

昨天宣布，在食品监管机构检测的酱油和其他中国调味品样品中，近四分之一的样品中发现了致癌化学物质。

在一些国家，其含量大大超过了国际安全限值，而另一些国家则含有违禁有毒物质的痕迹。

昨天，官方发布了一份“危险警告”，要求超市货架上的产品被清理干净，消费者和餐饮服务商扔掉违规品牌。

这份名单还包括各种蚝油、蘑菇酱和鸡肉腌料。所有这些都可能用于中国或泰国餐馆。

几乎所有涉及的品牌都是从泰国、中国大陆、台湾和香港进口的，并通过中国专业超市销售。主要零售商销售的产品中没有一种含有这种化学物质。

进行测试的食品标准局认为，最有可能的买家将是来自东亚和东南亚背景的中国和泰国餐馆和家庭。

它强调，偶尔的使用者不太可能受到伤害，但人们对高消费量的产品感到担忧。

这项针对100种产品的调查所涉及的样本是在五个多月前收集的。

FSA解释了推迟公布调查结果的原因，表示必须进行详细分析，联系进口商并追踪发货历史。化学物质3-MCPD被认为是非常危险的，以至于欧盟不会允许食品中含有超过最小量的3-MCPD——每千克仅0.02毫克。

然而，其中一款以Golden Mountain品牌销售的产品含有接近5000倍的这一数字。仅仅两茶匙就相当于女性每天可接受摄入量的20倍。

调查还发现了一种更有害的化学物质1,3-DCP的痕迹，该物质被禁止在所有食品中使用，因为它对基因有毒，而且致癌。

在100份样本中，约有24份样本的3-MCPD呈阳性，其中三分之二的样本含有微量1,3-DCP。这两种药物被认为会增加患癌症的风险。

FSA副主席Suzi Leather表示：“酱油可以在不使用这些化学物质的情况下生产，我们期待业界迅速采取行动，确保达到欧盟法律规定的限制。”FSA测试的商店集中在利兹、曼彻斯特、伦敦和剑桥。然而，这些品牌可能会在全国范围内销售。

这些产品的品牌包括金山、帝皇、珠江大桥、查米柴、金马克、金兰、李锦记、东春、辛辛和金天鹅。

一些制造商和进口商声称他们是造假者的受害者。