anyone else worried about the sudan1 scare?

[Titania]

I am!!

[MarsLady]

No, but only because I cook from scratch. I do think it's scary how easily things like this can happen though. It makes you wonder what the department of health, food, whatever get up to why this happened.

[Tinker]

No. Was only banned in 2003 anyway so we'll all have probably eaten it at some stage. If you ever got cancer you'd never know what it was down to. Prob had to tell us since Italians had spotted it therefore we'd look lax if took a relaxed attitude

[marthamoo]

Sorry - what?

[expatinscotland]

No. If we tried to avoid e/thing in life that causes cancer we'd live in isolation rooms. And even then there's no escaping genetics for some of us.

[MancMum]

I was not as I usually cook from scratch but then I realised that problem was with chilli powder and I do use that... so no-one is really safe are they.... does not matter what you do, there is alwsys a risk.. so no point worrying

[happymerryberries]

How many people who are panicing do so over a fatty cake, coffee and a fag?

Realistically we all take much greater risks each day without thinking about it.

[MarsLady]

here

[fairyfly]

Not at all, its going to happen, my mum took a drug that was taken off the market 35 years ago as it was connected with cancer. Now she has cancer and nobody really knows what caused it at the end of the day, could be a million other things. Besides who cares really, makes no difference.

[marthamoo]

Thanks for that, MarsLady.

No, what's the point in panicking - if we've eaten some we can't do anything about it now. And as the always eminently sensible hmb points out we are taking greater risks every day without stopping to think about it.

Sod's law it's WeightWatchers food though - wouldn't touch that stuff with a bargepole if I wasn't dieting

[Gwenick]

Mars - I cook from scratch - but also use chilli powder and worcestshire sauce (thankfully both had BB dates well before the affected ones).

Just because something was only made illegal in 2003 doesn't mean it's any less dangerous! There's lots of things that 'now' they know are dangerous (just think about the varying 'advice' we've all be given over the years about what to and what not to eat while pg!). And what about CJD - they've only 'just' stopped people who've had blood tranfusions giving blood!

Obviously at the end of the day you could still end up getting cancer so not really much point in panicking now

[Tinker]

Yes, but it means most people have probably eaten it! No point in getting het up about something you've already done.

[happymerryberries]

I am reminded of the third generation 'pill' scare. Pills were shown to increase the risk of a DVT. the media played it for all it was worth, women came off the pill and got pg. Getting PG had a hundred times the risk (over the elivated risk iyswim) of a DVT.

No one thinks about normal, natural risks but goes into overdrive about 'un-natural' risks that are far smaller

[TinyGang]

Also like the bsc thing with beef.

Have you noticed though when these 'scares' crop up how we're always told not to worry too much because the risk is only very small etc etc. Maybe it is, but the powers the be are never going to abmit to something that will cause everyone to panic big time even if what has occurred was highly dangerous to everyone. I doubt we are ever told the whole truth about these things.

And as others have said, if you've already eaten it, then it's too late anyway

[misdee]

not really. shocking that it happened but i'm not worried really. tend to avoid red dyes anyway as it has adverse effects on my kids skin (as does tartrazine)

[marthamoo]

list of foods affected

I haven't read it yet - going to now though.

[Carla]

I'm almost certain chilli powder is absolutely fine. If I understand it correctly the problem was with this ONE batch that they bought tons of years ago, and was subsequently added to C&B Worcestershire sauce as one of its ingredients. All the products listed contain this WS, containing sudan1. As far as I'm aware, chilli powder and Crosse & Blackwell WS are fine.

[dramaqueen72]

well, the risk has only been proved in animals actually -and that doesnt always follow thro to people, (for example simple paracetmol was held back from humans because it affected some animals badly...) they just stop us from eating it as a precaution after results showed cancer in lab animals.
also, we are all happily eating billions of 'chemicals/extras/additives/gm foods' right now today, that may be banned next year too, infact cancer experts already say a whole list of stuff we all eat daily is bad for cancer dont they?.
its right to avoid this list if you can, but not to kill yourself worrying about if youve eaten it already.

[edam]

What's worrying about it is the food industry's lax approach to safety and failure to act despite prior warnings about sudan 1. And the woeful failure of customs to inspect imported food - Dover council has been rapped over the knuckles by the FSA for its ineptitude. What does this mean for other banned food additives?

[Socci]

Message withdrawn

[Socci]

Message withdrawn

[Snugs]

Crosse & Blackwell

[marthamoo]

Lea and Perrins is fine. Am I the only person who didn't know there even were other kinds of Worcestershire sauce? I have only ever bought Lea and Perrins.

[nasa]

no, it was banned before 2003, what they were saying is that this particular batch has been in the country since 2003 but it has only just been used in food so you wouldn'thave been eating it since 2003.

[Enid]

more stuff added to recall list

[tatt]

I've only just got around to looking at this list because we don't have a lot of food with additives and the initial report didn't mention the co-op as one of the supermarkets affected. I was surprised to find how extensive the list is, though. CWS is on it as well as one flavour of walkers crisps so I think I've eaten some but probably the children haven't