Keep the corpse-preserver out of our food: Thai editorial

[Andre0720]

Meanwhile, our law-enforcement officials must get tough with those found using such chemicals in the food they sell. People found guilty of selling contaminated food face a maximum of two years in prison and a fine of up to Bt20,000. These penalties might not deter all prospective offenders, but strict law enforcement will discourage many.

They need to stamp down hard on this, and also establish a "pesticide monitoring group" to ensure that all pesticides used are safe according to the latest scientific research, and are not used in excess of the stated safe amounts. Food laced with formalin and also over 200 times the safe level of pesitcides, including pesticides banned outright in other nations around the world because of safety concerns, this is a toxic cocktail which is extremely harmful to developing foetuses and young children especially - and not so great for adults either.

Your most basic human right is the right to not be killed, be that by gunfire etc. or by slow poisoning. People need to demand their rights and the government need to enforce those rights with a vengeance.

Nothing resembling the enforcement of laws happens in this country unless a big shot demands it or those in a position to enforce laws have money put directly into their pockets. Thais would never think in terms of creating a safer environment for the next generation because there is only one thing that matters to Thai people. That is stuffing as money into their jeans as they can today, with no concern for tomorrow. The future of their children, and grandchildren clearly matters not one bit to these people. How does a society and culture become so sick and misdirected as to loose all decency and spirituality like Thailand's has? Have you ever overheard Thais praying at the Buddhist shrines. All they usually pray for is money, luck and beautiful things.

Unfortunately, in my experience, you are quite right.....

All about themselves..

Makes me wonder what the deities think about all these egotistic demands to them...

Provided anyone listens...

[namdocmai]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

Wouldnt be surprised if they shovel bag loads of it here. There's always been suspicion around what goes into the beer in Thailand.
Sometimes the beer i buy is flat when you pull the top.Its very difficult keeping perishables from going off in the tropics.

Singha claim there's no formaldehyde in their beer and never has been. I believe them on the first claim but wonder about the second.

In the 60s and 70s it was rumoured that Singha had formaldehyde in it. In 1973 I took my family from Laos to Pattaya for a five-day holiday and put two small Singhas in the freezer for four days. When I took them out they hadn't frozen at all. I thought that it was because of the formaldehyde, but it may have been something else they put in the beer. (The freezer was working OK with other stuff.)

some years ago i drank a lot of Chang beer and sometimes left an opened bottle in the fridge. 2 days later it still had foam and was drinkable.

Try that to a European (i mean made in Europe) beer and it will be dead the next day.

Thai beer always gives me headaches so i stopped drinking it at all.

[namdocmai]

My solution to this is only buy vegetable from the Royal Project, nothing else. At Chatuchak right next to the or-tor-kor fruitmarket is a big shop from the Royal Project and they sell very fresh , great tasting, organic. cheap vegetables there. It's not easy to shop there and always busy but worth the effort.

My wife read the article as well and said that she exactly has all the symptoms that Formalin can cause. So she is not allergic for something mysterious at all, only for Formalin. She has been to hospital a few times allready and has been sick several days.

Good that we know it now, as soon as there are restaurants that guarantee they are formalinfree we will only eat there or cook ourselves with vegy from the King.

Edited March 13, 2014 by namdocmai

[peterbkk9]

3 comments:

1) Not surprising at all

2) It would be interesting to know the situation in other countries such as Malaysia or Singapore.

3) Are there test kits available to test the food for pesticides & chemicals?

[anon11]

Ummm FORMALIN having worked with this product for over 30 years in the animal health industry I can tell you the pressure of the AG industry to keep this product on the market is huge and no government will not take on the ag industry at all.

Formalin as it is commonly called is a very strong dangerous product in any situation but if used correctly it is more safe than most people realise it's only when it is over used that issues arise IE in food butcher shops are the worst add it to poor quality meats and you have a different product it will last for ages.

This product like many used in food preservation is dangerous but the bottom line is it's not just the product it is the the person using it that is is the issue.

It is education that is needed not a ban...do we ban smoking do we ban booze do we ban chemicals used on farms or if YOU only knew the amount of GHP's that are used you would stop eating

[RubbaJohnny]

No mention of ALUM ...... this preservative is highly regarded by lunatics in the seafood industry as a preservative and colouring agent.

Banned in Japan and the west for many years because it causes brain damage.

Wouldnt be surprised if they shovel bag loads of it here. There's always been suspicion around what goes into the beer in Thailand.

Sometimes the beer i buy is flat when you pull the top.Its very difficult keeping perishables from going off in the tropics.

same with the mrs

[kevvy]

I can't imagine that anywhere in the USA, that Formalin/Formaldehyde would be allowed anywhere near food.

here's a bit from Wiki:

Formaldehyde is an organic compound with the formula CH₂O or HCHO. It is the simplest aldehyde, and is also called by its systematic name methanal. The common name of the substance comes from its similarity and relation to formic acid.

A gas at room temperature, formaldehyde is colorless and has a characteristic pungent, irritating odor. It is an important precursor to many other materials and chemical compounds. In 1996, the installed capacity for the production of formaldehyde was estimated to be 8.7 million tonnes per year.^[3] Commercial solutions of formaldehyde in water, commonly calledformol, were formerly used as disinfectants and for preservation of biological specimens.

In view of its widespread use, toxicity and volatility, exposure to formaldehyde is a significant consideration for human health.^[4] In 2011, the US National Toxicology Program described formaldehyde as "known to be a human carcinogen".^[5][6][7]

Or Australia

[KIWIBATCH]

.....had to say it......."Thailand..Hub of formalin Foods"...........

[kimamey]

Meanwhile, our law-enforcement officials must get tough with those found using such chemicals in the food they sell. People found guilty of selling contaminated food face a maximum of two years in prison and a fine of up to Bt20,000. These penalties might not deter all prospective offenders, but strict law enforcement will discourage many.

They need to stamp down hard on this, and also establish a "pesticide monitoring group" to ensure that all pesticides used are safe according to the latest scientific research, and are not used in excess of the stated safe amounts. Food laced with formalin and also over 200 times the safe level of pesitcides, including pesticides banned outright in other nations around the world because of safety concerns, this is a toxic cocktail which is extremely harmful to developing foetuses and young children especially - and not so great for adults either.

Your most basic human right is the right to not be killed, be that by gunfire etc. or by slow poisoning. People need to demand their rights and the government need to enforce those rights with a vengeance.

Nothing resembling the enforcement of laws happens in this country unless a big shot demands it or those in a position to enforce laws have money put directly into their pockets. Thais would never think in terms of creating a safer environment for the next generation because there is only one thing that matters to Thai people. That is stuffing as money into their jeans as they can today, with no concern for tomorrow. The future of their children, and grandchildren clearly matters not one bit to these people. How does a society and culture become so sick and misdirected as to loose all decency and spirituality like Thailand's has? Have you ever overheard Thais praying at the Buddhist shrines. All they usually pray for is money, luck and beautiful things.

I think the problem is they go to temples and look after monks rather than living by the 5 precepts of Buddhism.

As for the formalin always though it was dangerous but I don't know much about it so I'll leave that to others.

Edited March 13, 2014 by kimamey

[RubbaJohnny]

I'm imagining some future museum curator unearthing a pink leering with a leering lizard,

frozen for posterity by a red lobser overdose

the director of oddities adds he'll look

Dandy in Aspic