Dozens of ice cream references, as well as sugar, cookies and sesame seed products, are subject to recalls and recalls due to their contamination with ethylene oxide.
It is a substance banned in Europe since 2011, classified as carcinogenic, mutagenic and reprotoxic.
Consumers who have purchased a product from a contaminated lot are advised not to eat it, and can return it to the store for a refund.
Fancy an ice cream? Before giving yourself this little treat bought at the supermarket, you should first look at the lot number on the packaging. Indeed, for several weeks, the procedures for recalls or withdrawals of food products have been increasing. In question: the presence of ethylene oxide, a product classified as carcinogenic and banned in the EU.
"The French health authorities have been informed of the presence of residues of a chemical, ethylene oxide, at a content greater than the maximum regulatory limit in certain batches of ice cream," indicated the Directorate General of competition, consumption and fraud repression (DGCCRF).
But the list of contaminated products goes beyond the single section of ice cream.
So, what products are they found in?
What are the effects of this substance on health?
And what if you bought a contaminated product?
20 Minutes
helps you see more clearly.
What is Ethylene Oxide
Why is it banned in Europe and is it dangerous for health?
Ethylene oxide "is a gas used by fumigation on seeds and spices to kill bacteria, fungi and salmonella,"
Fabienne Loiseau, a journalist with
60 million consumers
, who has been investigating this substance for several months
told
20 Minutes
. It is "classified as a carcinogenic, mutagenic and reprotoxic agent (CMR), (its) use is prohibited in the European Union as a product for the protection of food and feed since 2011", explains the DGCCRF. Clearly, in addition to increasing the risk of developing cancer, ethylene oxide can cause cell and DNA mutations in the body, and is likely to affect fertility or the development of the body. unborn child.
To avoid any risk, "we proceed with the withdrawal of products regardless of the amount" of ethylene oxide, even if there is "not necessarily an immediate risk" for the health of consumers, reassures the DGCCRF. The health authorities are to date "not aware of reports of poisoning (…) with ethylene oxide in connection with the recalled products", she specifies. “This does not present the same immediate risk as salmonella poisoning,” compares Fabienne Loiseau. We have probably all consumed a contaminated product without knowing it. The problem is the lack of data on the cocktail effect: if we consume several contaminated products every day, what is the health risk? Today, no evaluation is in progress ”. However, in the case of a product classified as CMR,the authorities must "limit the exposure of consumers to the maximum", even if there is "not necessarily an immediate risk to the doses observed", adds the DGCCRF.
In which products have traces of ethylene oxide been found?
The origin of these recalls dates back to September 9, 2020, when "an Italian operator detects that sesame seeds imported from India contain residues of ethylene oxide", explained a Senate report last February.
And for more than ten months, “more than 7,000 lots of food products” have been recalled.
Ethylene oxide seems to be everywhere: it is found in many products containing sesame seeds, but the list is growing day by day: cookies, hummus, baguettes, salads, burger, flour, oils, purees , rusks and chocolates have been pinned down.
As well as dozens of ice cream references, we can find on the government site recall.conso.
How to explain this omnipresence? “In addition to products containing sesame, lots of spices such as curry, turmeric, ginger, pepper or even psyllium have been treated with ethylene oxide, explains Fabienne Loiseau. But also locust bean and guar gums, used as gelling and thickening agents, which explains in particular the recall of ice cream and jam sugars, but also food supplements ”and organic products. “Banned in Europe, this substance was not looked for in routine analyzes, creating a loophole into which extra-European producers and manufacturers have been engulfed. Indian producers have been shown to have deliberately defrauded by exporting sesame treated with ethylene oxide to Europe.They knew it was forbidden but that there would be no control, reveals Fabienne Loiseau. And in France, many industrialists in the food industry, even organic, have assured that they do not know this substance ”.
What if I bought a recalled product?
To check whether they are in possession of a product affected by a recall, consumers are invited to consult a list, regularly updated on the Bercy site, or to read the many posters displayed in supermarkets.
If this is the case, it should obviously not be consumed.
Then, "we can return the product to the store to obtain a refund, even if the product is used and we no longer have the receipt," reassures Fabienne Loiseau.
But at the end of the chain, it is difficult for French consumers to navigate, "especially since there are new recalls every day", points out Fabienne Loiseau. The consumer association CLCV thus regretted that "consumers remain poorly informed" about this contamination, and calls for "a risk assessment for the various categories of products concerned".
The authors of the parliamentary report for their part considered that this alert should "serve as a lesson", and called for tightening import controls.
But some are already looking to circumvent the ban on ethylene oxide.
"Manufacturers are very annoyed by these recalls which are multiplying, and pressure is being organized on the EU to relax the rules on processed products," informs Fabienne Loiseau.
Today, analyzes are carried out on raw materials, discarded when they contain ethylene oxide.
But they want them to be done on the finished products, which would make contaminated products more difficult to detect.
And this is only the beginning of this health scandal, warns the journalist: other products could be identified ”.
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60 million consumers
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