Cancer checks ordered on all spices in new food dye alert

Business, markets and finance news from The Times and The Sunday Times - Times Online: "ALL imports of spices including chilli powder, paprika, cayenne pepper and turmeric are to be subjected to rigorous new tests after concern that they contain illegal dyes linked to cancer.
Hundreds more products will be removed from supermarket shelves in the coming weeks after food safety officials ordered the urgent checks. Testing may begin as early as Friday and other spices will be added to the list this week.

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) is insisting on the stringent import checks after Sudan I and Para Red, carcinogenic chemical dyes banned from the food chain, were found in chilli powder and paprika on sale in Britain. Authorities believe that they could also have been used to colour cayenne pepper and turmeric.

The decision to test all spices on entry to Britain threatens to throw the catering industry into chaos. Supermarkets and corner shops will have substantial quantities of food recalled if test results prove positive.

The checks have been ordered even as the alarm over two more industrial textile dyes is raised by the European Commission. Rhodamine B and Orange II, which are also linked to cancer, are being used illicitly in food and spices. They have been detected in chilli powder imported from Vietnam and in food in Germany.

Further concern focuses on a spice called Sumak, in which traces of the dyes have been discovered. The Turkish ingredient is commonly used to flavour Middle Eastern dishes, particularly doner kebabs.

The FSA said that it was carrying out additional surveillance work in order to identify the scale of the problem. Jon Bell, its chief executive, has demanded extra screening after certificates from overseas suppliers guaranteeing that their products were free from contaminants were found to be inaccurate.

Only independent tests can verify the contents of supplies and help enforcement agencies throughout Europe to identify the source of these illicit dyes.

The FSA spokeswoman confirmed that an import testing plan would be developed this week. Several companies concerned about Para Red contamination have already submitted their products for tests at research centres.

Tony Hines, a crisis management expert at Leatherhead Food International which provides research for the food industry, said the worries about Rhodamine B and Orange II could lead to more recalls.

“There are specialist shops in cities such as London and Bradford that cater for ethnic communities and import products from their home countries.”

The action pre-empts a parliamentary inquiry after the election which is to investigate the testing and controls in place in Britain to detect unlawful dyes and other substances entering the food chain. Suppliers throughout Europe are also being warned that the era of complacency over food products is over.

Markos Kyprianou, the EU’s Consumer Protection Commissioner, will remind all member states this week that it is their responsibility to ensure that food companies are producing products that are safe.

Leading supermarkets and food manufacturing companies are checking whether chilli powder or paprika contaminated with Para Red has been used in any other recipe for a ready meal or cook-in sauce.
This comes after the alert last week that Para Red was found in paprika sold in jars by Bart Spices at Waitrose and Somerfield and in own-label Co-op ground paprika.

Bart Spices ordered its own tests on its paprika even though its suppliers in Spain, Ramon Sabeter of Murcia, had given the consignment the all-clear. The European Commission revealed last night that it had traced the supply to Uzbekistan.

Para Red has also been found in Old El Paso dinner kits and Tesco’s Barbeque-flavour Rice Crackers.

The FSA asked food companies and supermarkets to carry out the extra checks for Para Red. A warning letter was also sent to all trading standards and port authorities.

The food industry is already on alert for contamination after the discovery in February of Sudan I in Crosse & Blackwell Worcester Sauce, which is produced by Premier Foods and an ingredient used in hundreds of ready meals. This contamination triggered the biggest recall of food products in Britain. "