Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, July 17, suspended imports of soy sauce products from five Asian countries over reports that it could contain carcinogenic substances.
The commerce ministry also ordered the withdrawal from local markets of all soy sauce products from China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan and Thailand until samples had been tested in government laboratories.
The ministry was acting on reports that soy sauce from those countries contained high percentages of a chemical substance, Mepd-3, which is known to be carcinogenic.
Similar fears caused Bahrain's health ministry to announce a similar ban on soy products from Hong Kong, Malaysia and Thailand late Monday.
The Gulf Cooperation Council ― Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates ― suspended imports of Spanish olive oil earlier this month over fears it contained a carcinogenic substance called benzopyrene. ― (AFP, Dubai)
© Agence France Presse 2001
© 2001 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
