The Consumers’ Foundation has suggested that people take their own utensils when eating out, after it found sulfur dioxide in nine out of 16 pairs of disposable chopsticks it tested.
The non-profit group announced the results of its random sampling at a news conference in Taipei yesterday, saying there has been an increase in disposable chopstick use following local outbreaks of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Sulfur dioxide is commonly used to bleach single-use chopsticks.
Photo: Courtesy of the Consumers’ Foundation
The concentration was between 13 parts per million (ppm) and 145ppm in samples that tested positive, which does not exceed the maximum legal residue limit of 500ppm, it said.
The test, which was conducted in March, analyzed wooden and bamboo chopsticks collected from retailers, household goods shops and convenience stores in Taipei and New Taipei City, the foundation said.
Ingesting too much sulfur dioxide could cause difficulty breathing, diarrhea and nausea, or trigger an allergic reaction in people with asthma, which put people who dine out frequently at risk, it said.
The samples were also tested for peroxides and biphenyl, which were previously used to make disposable chopsticks, but have since been banned, the foundation said.
Neither compound was found in the test.
For the sake of their own health as well as the environment, people should avoid disposables chopsticks and use their own when eating out, the foundation said.
Single-use chopsticks should be visually checked and sniffed before being used, it said.
A pale color and a sour smell could both indicate excessive bleach residues, it said.
Immersion in hot water for two to three minutes could neutralize some of the sulfur dioxide in such utensils, the foundation added.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫), spokeswoman Yang Chih-yu (楊智伃) and Legislator Hsieh Lung-chieh (謝龍介) would be summoned by police for questioning for leading an illegal assembly on Thursday evening last week, Minister of the Interior Liu Shyh-fang (劉世芳) said today. The three KMT officials led an assembly outside the Taipei City Prosecutors’ Office, a restricted area where public assembly is not allowed, protesting the questioning of several KMT staff and searches of KMT headquarters and offices in a recall petition forgery case. Chu, Yang and Hsieh are all suspected of contravening the Assembly and Parade Act (集會遊行法) by holding
PRAISE: Japanese visitor Takashi Kubota said the Taiwanese temple architecture images showcased in the AI Art Gallery were the most impressive displays he saw Taiwan does not have an official pavilion at the World Expo in Osaka, Japan, because of its diplomatic predicament, but the government-backed Tech World pavilion is drawing interest with its unique recreations of works by Taiwanese artists. The pavilion features an artificial intelligence (AI)-based art gallery showcasing works of famous Taiwanese artists from the Japanese colonial period using innovative technologies. Among its main simulated displays are Eastern gouache paintings by Chen Chin (陳進), Lin Yu-shan (林玉山) and Kuo Hsueh-hu (郭雪湖), who were the three young Taiwanese painters selected for the East Asian Painting exhibition in 1927. Gouache is a water-based
Taiwan would welcome the return of Honduras as a diplomatic ally if its next president decides to make such a move, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said yesterday. “Of course, we would welcome Honduras if they want to restore diplomatic ties with Taiwan after their elections,” Lin said at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, when asked to comment on statements made by two of the three Honduran presidential candidates during the presidential campaign in the Central American country. Taiwan is paying close attention to the region as a whole in the wake of a
OFF-TARGET: More than 30,000 participants were expected to take part in the Games next month, but only 6,550 foreign and 19,400 Taiwanese athletes have registered Taipei city councilors yesterday blasted the organizers of next month’s World Masters Games over sudden timetable and venue changes, which they said have caused thousands of participants to back out of the international sporting event, among other organizational issues. They also cited visa delays and political interference by China as reasons many foreign athletes are requesting refunds for the event, to be held from May 17 to 30. Jointly organized by the Taipei and New Taipei City governments, the games have been rocked by numerous controversies since preparations began in 2020. Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) said yesterday that new measures by
RSS