Do you know that?/You know what? Do you know that?/You know what? Disposable chopsticks also have a shelf life. The relevant state departments have long stipulated that disposable chopsticks should be marked with the expiration date. Generally, the shelf life of disposable chopsticks is as long as 4 months, and expired chopsticks are easy to carry various germs. The reporter's investigation found that the packaging of disposable chopsticks in some restaurants, fast food restaurants and wholesale shops in Shenzhen had almost no shelf life, and most merchants and consumers were unaware of it. To this end, the municipal health supervision department reminds consumers to use disposable chopsticks as little as possible.
Reporter's investigation:
Most restaurants offer disposable chopsticks.
Yesterday 12 at 10, the business of Jing Tian Food Street was still booming, and diners used disposable bamboo chopsticks. After the reporter went in and sat down, the waiter brought a bowl, a teacup and a pair of disposable chopsticks wrapped in white paper. The reporter picked up the chopsticks and saw the red "disposable high-grade sanitary chopsticks" printed on the front of the chopsticks, but there was no factory name and production address on the packaging sleeve, let alone the shelf life.
The reporter opened the lid of chopsticks and saw black mold at one end, so he hurriedly called the waiter to replace it. But the other couple still has brown spots. "Are there any sterilized chopsticks in the shop?" The reporter asked. "Yes, but many guests don't want to use sterilized chopsticks, and they all want to use disposable chopsticks." After the waiter finished, he brought a pair of sterilized chopsticks to the reporter.
Later, the reporter went to a seafood restaurant in Huaqiang North and saw that the store provided a set of sterilized tableware. But when the reporter asked for disposable chopsticks, the waiter turned around and took out several pairs of disposable chopsticks from the workbench next to him without saying anything. Although the name and contact number of the restaurant are printed on the disposable chopsticks sleeve, there is no shelf life.
In the previous investigation, the reporter found that the largest supply of disposable chopsticks is all kinds of fast food restaurants and food stalls. The reporter saw in the fast food restaurant in Dongmen and Huaqiang North Business Circle that most of the disposable wooden chopsticks provided in the store were wrapped in simple plastic, with the words "disinfection, safety and hygiene" printed on them, and then placed in a spool on the dining table. The plastic covers of many chopsticks cracked and wooden chopsticks were exposed. Disposable chopsticks in some fast food restaurants outside the special zone are put in a bag without packaging, so customers can take them away by themselves. Sanitary conditions are really hard to reassure.
Wholesale market:
Chopsticks have no manufacturer and shelf life.
Regarding the source of disposable chopsticks, the reporter learned in the interview that most national chain fast food restaurants are mainly responsible for regular delivery, and the longest time is changed to half a month. The supply of chopsticks in individual restaurants is generally the wholesale market.
In a shop specializing in tableware wholesale in Dongmen, the reporter saw pots, bowls, ceramics, cookers and so on. Stacked on various shelves, disposable chopsticks packed in plastic bags are piled in a corner. These chopsticks are poorly packaged, so customers can choose one at will and throw it back into the plastic bag. A worker in the shop is putting a coat on each pair of chopsticks with a transparent plastic bag. "These are all wholesale from Jiangxi, and it will be better to pack and sell them."
"Have you disinfected the chopsticks here? Why is there no shelf life? " The reporter asked. "Must be disinfected, do chopsticks have a shelf life?" The staff member replied with a smile.
The reporter saw in several tableware wholesale shops nearby that although the operators all claimed that their chopsticks came from Jiangxi and Zhejiang provinces and were produced and disinfected by special manufacturers, the packaging of a pair of chopsticks was not printed with a clear production date and related information.
The owner of a large wholesale store told the reporter that most restaurants are tree cards, most of them choose naked chopsticks, and then customize the coat with the name and phone number of the restaurant. Fast food restaurants and food stalls generally buy disposable chopsticks with simple packaging, or buy bare chopsticks for direct use.
Operators and diners:
Most people don't know that chopsticks also have a shelf life
Most restaurant operators don't know that disposable chopsticks have a shelf life. Mr. Huo of a Hakka restaurant in Nanhai Avenue told reporters that he has been engaged in catering 10 for many years and has never heard that disposable chopsticks have a shelf life. Usually, when the relevant departments come to check, they only check the food hygiene or tableware hygiene of the restaurant, rarely check disposable chopsticks, and never ask to check the shelf life of chopsticks.
"I have never heard that chopsticks should be marked with a shelf life. Generally, it is used directly when it is taken. " Mr. He, who dined in a fast food restaurant on News Road, told reporters that he would take the initiative to ask for disposable chopsticks when he went out to eat. "Still use disposable chopsticks to rest assured, how do I know how to disinfect other chopsticks? It is impossible to take chopsticks out to eat from home every day. " Mr. He said helplessly.
When interviewed by the reporter, many diners said that they had never paid attention to the shelf life of disposable chopsticks, nor did they know that chopsticks should be marked with shelf life. Many diners said that the sanitary condition of disposable chopsticks is worrying, but they can't find a better substitute when eating out.
□ Warm reminder
The shelf life of sterilized disposable chopsticks is as long as 4 months.
The reporter saw in "People's Republic of China (PRC) National Standard" that the standard has long stipulated bamboo chopsticks, and each box of products should be marked with the manufacturer's name, production date and shelf life.
The General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine promulgated in 2006 also clearly pointed out that the minimum packaging unit of disposable products should indicate the shelf life of the products.
The staff of the Municipal Health Supervision Office revealed: "The shelf life of sterilized disposable chopsticks is up to 4 months. Once the shelf life has passed, it is likely to contain Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli. "
The staff of the Municipal Health Supervision Office reminded consumers that disposable chopsticks, if there are non-wood spots, moisture, deformation or obvious sour taste before use, are all signs of pollution, and you must not use them.
□ Expert opinion
Disposable chopstick
It's best to use it less.
"Every process of disposable chopsticks production has hidden concerns, and it is difficult to ensure hygiene for sanitary chopsticks." According to Dong Jinshi, vice chairman of the Plastic Recycling Committee of China Plastics Association and secretary general of Beijing Environmental Tableware Joint Organization, the production process of disposable chopsticks is roughly divided into three steps:
The first step is bleaching, in which the drugs are soaked first and then smoked with sulfur, and the chemical residues should be controlled within a certain limit. Some producers will add a large number of fungicides with pesticides as raw materials without authorization in order to increase the mildew-proof period.
The second step is drying. Talcum powder itself is easy to induce gallstones, and heavy metals contained in talcum powder can also cause damage to human blood and nervous system.
In the third step of polishing, some producers will use industrial paraffin containing carcinogen polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.
Dong Jinshi said that the main producing province of wooden chopsticks is Heilongjiang, and bamboo chopsticks are mainly produced in Hunan and Jiangxi. During the investigation, they also found that some irresponsible manufacturers used snakeskin bags and pesticide bags for packaging and delivery, and the pollution in packaging and along the way threatened the hygiene of chopsticks.
Dong Jinshi said that disposable chopsticks are very harmful to the environment and unsanitary, so I hope everyone will use disposable chopsticks as little as possible when eating out.
Disposable chopsticks account for 10% of wood consumption.
According to the survey, there are thousands of enterprises producing wooden chopsticks in China, which consume nearly 5 million cubic meters of wood resources every year. The annual forest harvesting in China is about 47.58 million cubic meters, and these chopsticks account for 10.5%. A tree that has grown for 20 years can only be made into 6000-8000 pairs of chopsticks. China produces/kloc-0.0 million boxes of disposable chopsticks every year, of which 6 million boxes are exported to Japan, South Korea and other countries. The forest coverage rate in China is less than a quarter of that in Japan, and the forest stock is reduced by 2 million cubic meters every year for the production of disposable chopsticks.