A well-known Chinese food processing company was caught using hydrogen peroxide in the process of processing chicken feet. Hygiene concerns are mounting, especially after it became known that processing work was carried out with chicken feet piled on a factory floor where wastewater had pooled.
China Central Television (CCTV) on Mar. 15 aired its exposé program "3·15 Gala," released in conjunction with Consumer Day, and revealed the production site of a chicken feet processor in Chengdu, Sichuan province.
According to CCTV, the company's processed chicken feet are popular products sold both online and offline as well as at snack specialty shops. In the released video, wastewater had pooled on the factory floor and a foul stench permeated the area, with chicken feet stacked directly on the floor. Workers carried out the work using cleaning tools such as brooms and shovels, and they were also seen picking up chicken feet that had fallen on the floor and putting them back into processing tubs.
In particular, it was found that a "bleaching process" was carried out in which chicken feet were soaked in hydrogen peroxide to make them whiter during processing. Hydrogen peroxide is a strong oxidizer and disinfectant that, when used in food processing, destroys nutrients such as protein. Prolonged ingestion can also cause damage to the oral mucosa and abnormal liver and kidney function, so its use is banned in China.
CCTV said signs of bleaching chicken feet with hydrogen peroxide were also confirmed at another food company in Chongqing.
Chinese authorities launched a sweeping crackdown on the companies involved. In the process, they seized hundreds of boxes of products found to have problems. Authorities plan to conduct additional investigations into whether these companies used hydrogen peroxide.