SINCE SEPTEMBER 2020, the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) has recalled over 40 food products contaminated with ethylene oxide – and items will continue to be removed from shop shelves ‘for some time’.
Ethylene oxide is a chemical used as a pesticide or sterilising agent, and classified as a mutagen, carcinogen and reproductive toxicant by the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA). It has been banned in the European Union since 1981.
Although the chemical is banned in the EU, it’s still used in non-EU member states to prevent the growth of fungi and bacteria in foodstuffs.
It is used in a wide range of items – products recalled so far this year from Irish stores include food supplements, ice cream, flavoured cheese, sesame seeds and instant noodles.
In late August, for example, there were numerous recalls over a period of just three days:
The European Commission was first notified of the presence of ethylene oxide in the EU food market on 9 September 2020. At that time, Belgium reported to the European Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF) that sesame seeds from India had been contaminated with ethylene oxide.
What effect does ethylene oxide have on humans?
Eating foods that contain ethylene oxide does not pose an acute risk to health, according to the European Chemicals Agency. However, there is an increased health risk if foods containing ethylene oxide are eaten over a long period of time. As a result, the European Commission issued a mass recall of contaminated products to ensure the consumption of ethylene oxide is kept to a minimum.
The impacts of acute, long-term ethylene oxide consumption include an increased risk of cancers of the white blood cells, including non-Hodgkin lymphoma, myeloma, and lymphocytic leukaemia. Long-term exposure to ethylene oxide also increases the risk of breast cancer in females.
However, in order to reach the level of ethylene oxide that would cause a health risk, a person would have to consume the contaminated foods every day for the rest of their life.
Why is this a problem?
The contamination of foods containing ethylene oxide impacts several EU member states. The European Commission has held several meetings with food and feed crisis coordinators in member states in recent months.
In July, the European food and feed crisis coordinators issued a mass recall of all products affected in member states. In a statement explaining their decision, they said: “It is necessary, in order to ensure a high level of health protection, that the food or feed business operators who have placed such products on the EU market shall, under the control of the national competent authorities, withdraw those products from the EU market, and recall them from consumers.”
Their decision in July to issue a mass recall came as they concluded that there is “no safe level of exposure” to ethylene oxide, and they noted that “any level consumers may be exposed to presents a potential risk to consumers”.
How worried should we be?
Jane Ryder from the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI), which issued the 40+ recalls of food items, said that “consumers should not be unduly worried”.
“The consumption of foods containing ethylene oxide does not pose an acute risk to health, but there is an increased health risk if foods contaminated with ethylene oxide are consumed over a long period of time,” she said.
However, Ryder added that “exposure to ethylene oxide needs to be minimised and contaminated products must be removed from the market”.
In addition, the quantity of products contaminated with ethylene oxide is not known. As a result, Ryder said she envisages the recalls of affected food will “continue for some time” – until all known contaminated products have been withdrawn.
How did the contamination occur?
The initial contamination of foodstuffs with ethylene oxide occurred in products from India with sesame seeds. Product recalls related to this contamination are still continuing, and impact products with long shelf dates – like cereals, chocolate, biscuits, crackers and spices.
Another source of contamination was found in the additive locust bean gum, which originates from the seeds of the carob tree. Locust bean gum is used as a thickening agent or stabiliser and is mainly found in products such as ice cream, cereals, meat products, fermented milk and cheese.
However, Ryder stated that how the locust bean gum contamination occurred has “not yet been confirmed” and therefore, “the source of the issue is not known in all cases”.
So far, the FSAI has issued recalls on over 40 food products. It is not known how many more recalls will be required to remove ethylene oxide contamination from the Irish market.
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