Fake, Plastic Rice in China: Facts

Story:

Fake Chinese Rice made of plastic is in the Market.

Other Versions

1. Chinese companies mass producing fake rice out of plastic.

2. China manufacturing Plastic rice, selling it as real food.

Picture about Fake, Plastic Rice in China — Fake, Plastic Rice in China

Analysis:

Messages spreading through emails and social networking sites have raised this claim that Fake, Plastic Rice has been mass produced and sold in China. Yes, it is a fact, but the incident was reported in past.

In early January 2011, the Korean-language Weekly Hong Kong reported about the Singapore media disclosing fake rice made out of plastic that was massively sold in the Chinese market. According to the report, some distributors are selling the fake plastic rice in Taiyuan, Shaanxi Province, and it is a mixture of potatoes, sweet potatoes and plastic shaped in the form of rice grains, to which industrial synthetic resins are added later. Merchants said that the low cost plastic rice was sold in mass quantity and allowed wholesalers make large profits.

It’s Dangerous!

Since the rice made from plastic does not behave like normal rice, it remains hard even after cooking, and the synthetic resins can be potentially very dangerous when consumed. Talking about the incident, a food expert said, “This ‘plastic rice’ is made by forming potatoes and sweet potatoes into rice-like shape, then adding industrial synthetic resins. Since the rice is different from normal rice, it is hard like stone even when cooked. Moreover, the synthetic resin in it is very harmful to the human body.”

Food Industry in China

The food industry in China has been facing such problems since many years. Since 2003 and also in 2008 during Beijing Olympics, there were reports of fake, toxic Eggs and Grapes made and sold in China. In 2012, fake concrete filled Walnuts were sold.

Following such concerns, in October 2007, China sought to food safety regulations by approving new legislation that aimed at improving and monitoring national standards in food production. Nonetheless, such incidents still continued.