Contaminated cooking oil recalled in China
Following the aflatoxin M1 milk contamination of China’s largest dairy producer, Mengniu, the toxin has now been found in samples of cooking oils produced by three separate companies operating in China.
The government has recalled the products and ordered production to be halted by the companies in question.
Unlike Megniu’s contaminated milk that was recalled before it reached consumers, it remains unknown if the tainted cooking oil products reached the market.
Aflatoxin M1 is a compound produced by fungi that usually grow on whole grains, seeds, spices and nuts. In the case of the contaminated milk, mouldy farm seeds were found at a Mengniu farm.
The toxin can, at high levels, cause liver cancer according to the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, and is considered to be potentially lethal.
