6 of The Most Stomach-Churning Food Scandals.
Chinese Milk scandal (2008)
Worldwide safety concerns were sparked when high levels of industrial chemical melamine was found in powdered and ordinary milk from leading companies across China. The scale of the problem was horrifying. At least six babies died and a further 300,000 were taken ill after drinking tainted milk. The scandal culminated in the bankruptcy of dairy suppliers the Sanlu Group and the sentencing of 21 executives and milk producers, two of whom were given the death penalty. Indianosean Food scare (2005) About 8 years ago Jakarta,the capital of indonesia were rocked by the contamination of foods that consisted of a staple diet for many indonesians. About 60% of noodle found in shops and high street corners, as well as tofu and salted fish were laced with formaldehyde,a known carcinogen. the chemical was added to extend shelf-life of the products, an illegal substance that can cause vomiting, diarrhea and in extreme cases can be really fatal. Some also experienced burning in the eyes, nose and throat. In 2007, vietnam were also involved in the same food scandal, the food was mainly found from street-side carts, but large grocery stores were also investigated. Americas Contaminated Peanuts (2008-2009) In late 2008 and early 2009 Peanut Corporation of America faced a huge problem as their salmonella contaminated peanuts caused the death of nine people and at least 691 people in 46 states, half of them children fell ill due to consuming the products. It led the company to bankrupt after numerous people spawned lawsuit against them. German Vegetables contaminated with E Coli (2011) In May 2011, Germany was struck by an E Coli outbreak that was more rarer and deadly than usual. raw tomatoes, cucumbers, and lettuce were found contaminated and german's friendship with spain suffered as german officials identified the source of contamination from spanish greenhouses; it was later found that spanish vegetables had been contaminated while being transported in germany, eventually leading the source to an organic farm in lower Saxony.However, Spanish vegetable farmers were angered because of losses that neared 200 million per week (USD). Thousands became sick and approximately 42 died in the outbreak, making it one of the worst food contamination episodes in recent history. Horse-meat Scandal (2013) Consumers in the UK were hit with shocking news at the start of the year, when they discovered,that Findus frozen beef burgers and beef lasagnes contained horsemeat. Investigation traced the source back to third party supplier Comigel, a French-headquartered frozen ready meal producer, from its subsidiary Tavola factory in Capellen, Luxembourg. Around 50% of the products tested contained horse-meat. However according to reports both Findus UK and the French supplier withdrew all products related to the third party supplier. The reason for the adulteration was initially stated as "highly likely" criminal activity. More companies were investigated, leading to many more discoveries including nestle and birds eye. All the companies removed their products from supermarket shelves in the UK. The full reason has not yet been found as why this happened as investigations are still going on, but it still has had an impact on sales and a more serious impact on how consumers feel about food. Chinas Ratty lamb (2013) The more latest food scandal in China was rat meat gt sold labelled as lamb.Among those arrested were 63 people who allegedly ran an operation in Shanghai and the coastal city of Wuxi that bought fox, mink, rat and other meat that had not been tested for quality and safety, processed it with additives like gelatin and passed it off as lamb. China are getting harder regulation for food safety as new food scandals unfold everyday. |