Sandwich with grease

Components of commercial paints, varnishes and greases for metallurgical industry are legally added in food products in Ukraine.

The problem of dairy products quality control was discussed today, August 8, in Uzhgorod.

Petryschak Alla, chief pediatrician-allergist of the regional center said: ‘The importance of dairy products quality cannot be overestimated in nutrition, especially for children under 3-year. What is particularly dangerous, some dairy products contain antibiotics. Their use can be resulted in the early months of life the child can have an allergic reaction. It is very important to buy dairy products from reliable sources. Unfortunately, Ukraine has only one city laboratory, which can determine the content of antibiotics in dairy products.

Yuriy Chornobryvets, a Director of Kyiv Institute of Consumer Expertise, paid attention to very often used dangerous component of dairy products – palm oil. ‘This is very harmful carcinogen, banned in the U.S. and the most European countries. But here, in Ukraine, unfortunately, some manufacturers actively abuse by this refractory product, which by the way, is used in the metallurgical industry for lubricating of various mechanisms. Our manufacturers freely and legally use palm oil. Meanwhile, it is very difficult to excrete from the body this product, which is very harmful but also very cheap.’

However, despite such a danger the palm oil in Ukraine is a part of the condensed milk, spreads, sour cream, candy, chocolate, noodles, chips, crackers, ice cream and more. Palm oil in some of these products reaches 95%! However, manufacturers often ‘forget’ to indicate this on the label, they just note ‘with the addition of plant oil’. And once again, the law is loyal to them. Another dangerous substance that can be often found in the food is E-171, or titanium dioxide – the main component of paint-whitewash, varnishes and plastics (!).

Therefore experts advised to carefully read the structure of products you want to buy by paying attention to the fact that there were not unfamiliar to you components or unclear wording. You should also listen to the independent production tests carried out in laboratories the results of which subsequently spread in the media. And the most important: to vote with your purse against unscrupulous manufacturers and vote ‘in favor’ of those who makes high quality products. And such in our state, fortunately, becomes more and more, said Yuriy Chornobryvets.