Recent controversy over the discovery of contaminated clouding agents in beverages was ratcheted up a notch after an anonymous manufacturer said that the use of illegal food additives in place of palm oil to extend the shelf life of clouding agents was a practice that began two decades ago.
Department of Health officials and police investigators on Monday last week confirmed that Yu Sheng Chemical Co had been adding di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) to clouding agents.
Lee Ching-chang (李俊璋), a professor of environmental health at National Cheng Kung University, said legal clouding agents are used to mix otherwise immiscible contents in beverages such as juices or sports drinks and act as emulsifiers to give products a more appealing appearance.
Clouding agents are compound substances and each manufacturer has a different recipe, Lee said, adding that although the actual ingredient lists of the agents are not made readily available to the public, the problem lies not in the agents themselves, but in the DEHP that was added to them.
Clouding agents tow which DEHP has been aded appeared as early as two decades ago, an anonymous manufacturer said, adding that the color of tainted clouding agents was very white and esthetically pleasing.
The most important part, the manufacturer said, was that clouding agents made with DEHP could be preserved for up to half a year longer than those made using palm oil.
Given the same amount of legal and illegal clouding agents, DEHP-laced clouding agents could be diluted and added into more drinks, the manufacturer said, adding that it was “quite shocking” that the health department knew nothing about this.
However, people in the industry were aware of the -“problematic” clouding agents, the manufacturer said, adding that businesses with a conscience or that operated on a large scale would not use it because DEHP was listed as a category four toxic substance by the government in 1999.
Ling Yong-chien (凌永健), a professor of chemistry at National Tsing Hua University, said that while he could not say how many products on the market used clouding agents, he recommended that the public be on the lookout for thick and pasty substances, such as juice concentrates, popsicles or shredded ice, almond tofu or other products and drinks that use added fragrances.
Wei Te Chemical Co, a manufacturer of clouding agents, said the reason most businesses tended to utilize illegal clouding agents was not because of price, but rather the long preservation periods and esthetically pleasing effect of using DEHP-laced products.
Wei Te chairman Cheng Ching-chu (鄭清竹) said many natural vegetable oils gave off a bad odor after a while, which meant that clouding agents made from palm oil had a shorter shelf life.
Compared with agents laced with DEHP, agents made from palm oil had a yellow tinger and were less stable, Cheng said, adding that for larger chemical companies, clouding agents usually did not account for even one-thousandth of total profits.
In the case of Wei Te, Cheng said, the company would only begin making the agents after businesses had placed their orders, trading time for quality.
In terms of fragrances whose quality was also called into question, Cheng said companies would not normally add DEHP to them, adding that academics should make sure they have enough proof before commenting in public, as they had only managed to hurt an already ailing industry.
TRANSLATED BY JAKE CHUNG, STAFF WRITER
The Taipei Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) Wanda-Zhonghe Line is 81.7 percent complete, with public opening targeted for the end of 2027, New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) said today. Surrounding roads are to be open to the public by the end of next year, Hou said during an inspection of construction progress. The 9.5km line, featuring nine underground stations and one depot, is expected to connect Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall Station to Chukuang Station in New Taipei City’s Jhonghe District (中和). All 18 tunnels for the line are complete, while the main structures of the stations and depot are mostly finished, he
The first global hotel Keys Selection by the Michelin Guide includes four hotels in Taiwan, Michelin announced yesterday. All four received the “Michelin One Key,” indicating guests are to experience a “very special stay” at any of the locations as the establishments are “a true gem with personality. Service always goes the extra mile, and the hotel provides much more than others in its price range.” Of the four hotels, three are located in Taipei and one in Taichung. In Taipei, the One Key accolades were awarded to the Capella Taipei, Kimpton Da An Taipei and Mandarin Oriental Taipei. Capella Taipei was described by
Minister of Economic Affairs Kung Ming-hsin (龔明鑫) yesterday said that private-sector refiners are willing to stop buying Russian naphtha should the EU ask them to, after a group of non-governmental organizations, including the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA), criticized the nation’s continued business with the country. While Taiwan joined the US and its Western allies in putting broad sanctions on Russia after it invaded Ukraine in 2022, it did not explicitly ban imports of naphtha, a major hard-currency earner for Russia. While state-owned firms stopped importing Russian oil in 2023, there is no restriction on private companies to
President William Lai (賴清德) is expected to announce a new advanced “all-domain” air defense system to better defend against China when he gives his keynote national day speech today, four sources familiar with the matter said. Taiwan is ramping up defense spending and modernizing its armed forces, but faces a China that has a far larger military and is adding its own advanced new weapons such as stealth fighter jets, aircraft carriers and a huge array of missiles. Lai is expected to announce the air defense system dubbed “Taiwan Dome” in his speech this morning, one of the sources said. The system
RSS