Print

Mail

wiki links

KFC says it does not use dangerous dye

Taiwan management of the US fast food restaurant franchise Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) said yesterday that all dishes offered in its restaurants around Taiwan are safe and free from the suspected cancer-causing dye Sudan 1.

Taiwan KFC managing director Olga Wu (吳美君) told the media that suppliers of Taiwan KFC and those in China are different and all the food materials and ingredients provided in Taiwan have been monitored strictly to ensure their quality and safety.

Taiwan KFC contacted the media yesterday after KFC China pulled two chicken dishes off its menu across the country on Wednesday after discovering they contained Sudan 1 dye, a synthetic industrial chemical banned for use in food. Sudan 1 dye was found in red pepper powder used as an ingredient in the KFC restaurants' New Orleans wings and drumstick burgers.

Noting that the ingredients used in the KFC restaurants around China were locally sourced, Wu said that the red pepper powder used in Taiwan's KFC restaurants is imported from Spain.

Besides, Wu said, use of dyes like Sudan 1, 2, 3 and 4 are strictly controlled in Taiwan.

As of noon yesterday, news reports from China said that Sudan 1 -- used in petrol and shoe polish but banned from food because it heightens the risk of cancer -- was distributed by a Guangzhou-based factory to suppliers in nine provinces across China for use in foods.

Sudan 1 triggered a food scare across much of Europe last month. In Britain, for example, hundreds of sauces, soups and ready-made meals have been taken off supermarket shelves since the discovery of the chemical in food on Feb. 18.
This story has been viewed 3226 times.