Food market awash with illegal red dye
red dye Sudan I continues with the UK's food watchdog finding the
potential carcinogen in two product lines on sale in the country.
The list of illegal products keeps on growing as investigations carried out by the Food Standards Agency reveal a seemingly never-ending list of food batches illegally present on the supermarket shelves.
Consumers are warned this week that a range of spice products distributed by Sita Spices have been recalled as well as batches of Natco brand Tandoori Masala spice mix, the latter follows earlier warnings about certain batches of this same mix in October last year.
The recall comes one month after a European clampdown that saw Brussels declaring an emergency measure extending rules on the illegal carcinogenic red chemical dyes, to include curry powder.
Effective immediately, the rule extends the paper trail for ingredients, requiring that imports of chilli and chilli products - including curry powder - can only cross the EU border with proof they are free of the illegal chemical dyes -Sudan I, Sudan II, Sudan III or Scarlet Red (Sudan IV).
The rulings extended tight measures already in place since June 2003 when France initally alerted the European Commission to traces of Sudan 1 found in chilli and chilli powder.
That the rules now include curry powder, found extensively in European food products, means more paperwork and potentially a surge in product recalls for the food industry.
The issue started in May 2003 with the discovery of the illegal Sudan 1 in chilli and chilli products, since then, via feedback through Europe's Rapid Alert System, the Commission has identified more related substances.
In the UK alone the food industry has recalled for destruction more than 160 products - ranging from pesto sauce to chicken tikka masala - from the supermarket shelves since July 2003 and enforcement of the new measures.
From now on, chilli and chilli products including curry powder can only be imported into the EU if they are accompanied by an analytical report which shows that they do not contain Sudan I, Sudan II, Sudan III or Scarlet Red (Sudan IV) - classified as carcinogens by the International Agency for Research on Cancer.
Random checks will also be carried out on chilli and curry products already on the market, said the Commission last mongh. Maximising the communication flow between EU Member States, Brussels added that if any Sudan dye is discovered in products already on sale in the EU or in consignments rejected at EU borders, the Member States will continue to use the Rapid Alert System food and feed.
Due for review in January 2005, the emergency rules could well be extended if new findings come to light.
