Beware & Protect Yourself 03 (Sep 10 - Dec 14)

[LenaHuat]

Shanghai Mayor orders steamed bun probe:-
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_asiapacific/view/1122521/1/.html

[LenaHuat]

And now those heartless operators are producing sulphur-smoked ginger, potatoes and bean sprouts .
This piece is on ginger:-
http://www.cnkeyword.info/yichang-seized-nearly-100-million-tons-poison-ginger-food-is-equal-to-slow-poison/

[winston]

[behappyalways]

Social Media: Preparedness 101: Zombie Apocalypse

http://emergency.cdc.gov/socialmedia/zombies_blog.asp

[winston]

There's now a massive recall of Sports Drinks, Fruit Juices, Jams etc in Taiwan.

The manufacturer supposedly used a toxic chemical instead of the more expensive palm oil ingredient.

The problem is not limited to Taiwan only as those products have been exported overseas to the US, China and SE Asia.

[winston]

Alert issued on Taiwan energy drinks May 25, 2011

The Centre for Food Safety urges people not to consume three kinds of energy drinks produced in Taiwan which may have been contaminated with a plasticiser commonly known as DEHP. Retailers should also stop selling the affected products.

Drinking high levels of DEHP over a long time may affect the liver and kidney and even cause cancer, the centre said.

The Taiwanese authority notified the centre that the three drinks - Speed Sports Drink in regular and lemon flavours, in 600ml bottles, and Dong Nung 1000 Sports Drink - had been distributed to Hong Kong. All are produced by Young Energy Source Co., Ltd.

Importer Jet Win Food Ltd is recalling the affected products, and has set up a hotline - 2637 0646.

The centre will investigate the incident, monitor the recall arrangements and collect samples of related products for testing.

http://www.news.gov.hk/en/categories/he ... 3437.shtml

[winston]

On TV CNA:-

8 people in Germany has died, from eating cucumbers from Spain.

[winston]

Made in China ...

Nearly one in 10 toys in China unsafe: watchdog

China's safety watchdog has found nearly one in ten toys in the domestic market is unsafe, highlighting widespread quality problems in the country's poorly regulated manufacturing industry.

Twenty out of 242 toys selected randomly in eight provinces and metropolitan areas were found to be substandard, the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine said in a statement Friday.

Three of the toys contained heavy metals such as lead and chromium, which can be poisonous, while other products had sharp edges and "dangerous protuberances", the statement said.

The safety watchdog also tested other items including children's shoes, bicycles and baby walking chairs. Up to 20 percent of each product were found to have problems including excessive levels of formaldehyde and durability issues.

The reputation of China's domestic manufacturing industry has been tarnished in recent years by a series of product safety scandals including contaminated food, toys coated with toxic lead paint and dangerous tyres.

Environmental group Greenpeace said this month that some children's toys sold in mainland China and Hong Kong contained phthalates, chemicals used to soften plastic and said to cause hormone and reproductive problems.

Source: AFP Asian Edition

[winston]

Hong Kong orders recall of Glaxo children's drug

HONG KONG, June 10, 2011 (AFP) - Hong Kong has ordered pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline to recall an antibiotic used to treat infections in children which contained a chemical additive twice recommended European safety limits.

A government spokesman said Friday that tests revealed the Augmentin antibiotic syrup produced by the British firm's French factory contained an unsafe level of a plasticiser known as Diisodecyl phthalate (DIDP).

France's drug regulator had been notified of the syrup recall on Thursday, he added.

The drugs maker is the latest company to become embroiled in a scare over plasticisers -- chemicals used to make plastic pliable -- with Hong Kong banning several Taiwanese drinks in recent weeks after tests showed they were tainted with excessive amounts of another plasticiser.

Taiwan has issued a major recall of products, including nearly half a million bottles of sports drinks and fruit juice, over fears they contained the chemical used in plastics.

GlaxoSmithKline's popular Augmentin powder was found to contain twice Europe's limit for DIDP in food, the spokesman said, adding that long-term consumption at high levels may have adverse effects on the liver.

"(GlaxoSmithKline) has failed to demonstrate the safety of the tainted product to our satisfaction. The threat to public health cannot be ruled out as this stage," the spokesman added.

But the firm appeared to contradict Hong Kong's findings, saying the "level of DIDP exposure identified as present in the sample tested is significantly lower than the levels that the US and European authorities deem to present a level of risk."

The firm added that is does not "intentionally" use the additive in its products, but said phthalates "are ubiquitous and are present as trace compounds in the environment and in many common items of daily consumption."

Hong Kong's undersecretary for food and health Gabriel Leung told reporters Friday: "Existing laws provide us with the option of revoking the licence of any medication with problems."

"We will seek advice from the Department of Justice to see if further legal action shall be taken," he added.

The Hong Kong health department did not say how much of the syrup was available in the teeming city of seven million.

Hong Kong also announced early Friday that it would ban the import of all fruit syrup produced by manufacturer Jin Zhuan Lifesciences Enterprise in Taiwan over concerns about plasticiser additives.

China, the Philippines and South Korea have also limited imports or sales of foodstuffs from Taiwan after the alarm was raised over the chemical DEHP, which can cause hormone malfunctions in children.

http://www.mysinchew.com/node/58545

[winston]

Are Alaskan Crabs be affected as well ?

Scientists warn of deadly shellfish in part of Alaska by Yereth Rosen

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (Reuters) - Public health officials warned Alaskans to avoid eating shellfish they harvest from the southeastern tip of the state after high concentrations of a poison than can kill humans was found.

State officials said scientists monitoring algae blooms near Ketchikan discovered some of the world's highest-ever recorded levels of toxins that cause paralytic shellfish poisoning -- a potentially fatal ailment that can paralyze vital organs.

The most poisonous shellfish discovered were baby mussels at a dock in Ketchikan with toxin levels of more than 30,000 micrograms per hundred grams of shellfish meat. This is well over the 80-microgram level considered toxic, the Alaska Department of Health and Social Services has warned.

Those levels are so high that a single mussel could kill several people, scientists at the University of Alaska Southeast said in a statement on Thursday.

In other types of shellfish, members of the multi-agency Alaska Harmful Algal Bloom monitoring program found toxin levels ranging from 1,100 to 5,000 micrograms per gram of shellfish meat, the department said.

State officials have posted warnings on the region's beaches, docks, stores and other public places, and police have issued warnings on marine radios, the department said.

Paralytic shellfish poisoning toxins are absorbed by certain shellfish from algae. Symptoms of poisoning start with tingling and numbness in the mouth, and can spread through the body.

"If it gets to your lungs, it shuts them down," said Greg Wilkinson, a spokesman for the state health department.

The shellfish warning does not apply to commercially harvested products, which are tested for toxins by the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation.

But people harvesting shellfish for their personal consumption do not have access to the testing systems, Wilkinson said.

Two people from Metlakatla, a Native village on Annette Island near Ketchikan, were hospitalized this week with apparent symptoms of paralytic shellfish poisoning, the department said. Last year, two people in Alaska died after exhibiting symptoms, Wilkinson said.

The high levels of toxins are linked to a proliferation of certain types of algae, Wilkinson said.

Source: Reuters US Online Report Domestic News