Big in Japan: Eating Mozzarella cheese can kill you

by Matthew Firestone on

Forgive the sensational title of today’s blog, but I am a serious foodie when it comes to all things Italian…

After all, few things in life hit the spot quite like an authentic Italian antipasto of parma ham, buffalo mozzarella and marinated red peppers.

So, you can imagine my shock and surprise when I discovered that my local supermarket here in Tokyo was no longer selling mozzarella cheese.

After making this horrific discovery, I quickly asked the store clerk where I could find this necessary ingredient for my antipasto in the making.

What was their response you ask?

Well, quite simply that Japan has decided to ban all imports of Italian buffalo mozzarella cheese following the discovery of high levels of dioxin in the cheese.

Yikes!

(Interestingly enough, the store clerk then recommended that I try using sharp cheddar cheese instead of mozzarella in my antipasto!)

Anyway, turns out that as of yesterday, the Japanese Ministry of Health has been impounding all shipments of this delicious cheese after South Korean officials discovered 29 toxic samples.

Dioxin, which is an extremely potent carcinogen, hit the headlines a few years back following the alleged poisoning of Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko.

Needless to say, this is not the kind of chemical you want on your dinner plate!

Last month, Chinese-made dumplings containing pesticides sickened 175 Japanese, which launched the issue of food safety and security into the public spotlight.

Culturally, the Japanese are incessant gourmands, so issues concerning food contamination are not taken lightly here in the Land of the Rising Sun.

So, following a rash of food poisonings in neighboring South Korea, the Japanese government was quick to act.

Each year, Italy produces 33,000 tons of mozzarella, and exports 16 percent of that (or approximately 329 tons) to Japan.

So, given that there are batches of killer cheese floating around South Korea, which imports a mere 10 tons of the gooey product, the Japanese public is applauding the government’s foresight.

Of course, the Italian government is less than happy as of recent.

Paolo Minster De Castro, Italy’s agriculture minister, is in talks with Japanese, South Korean and European Union officials on the issue.

At an emergency summit in Rome, the Italian health ministry admitted that traces of carcinogenic dioxins had been discovered at some farms in Campania.

Health officials previously stated that herds of water buffalo, whose milk is used to make the cheese, could be ingesting poisons from illegally dumped rubbish.

Dioxins are usually released when plastic is burnt, though they can also seep into groundwater from decomposing rubbish.

However, the Italian government is fiercely denying that the dioxin in the buffalo mozzarella comes from improperly disposed garbage.

In fact, the Italian health ministry even went as far as to reassure the public that the problems were “limited and contained.”

For those of you living in Japan, my suggestion is to pass on mozzarella for awhile, even though the problem has thus far been limited to the buffalo variety.

And, for anyone living over in America who is fond of Italian food, perhaps you might want to consider going out for Thai this week.

** All images courtesy of the WikiCommons Media Project **

This is America, please order in English

by Abha Malpani on

Since 2005, a Philadelphia based cheese-steak bistro owner has been defending a signpost in his shop that said: “This is America, please order in English.” Not surprisingly, he was taken to court on grounds of discrimination, equating it to derogatory signs like “Whites Only”. No ruling has been given yet.

I wrote a post earlier about how surprising I found it that people barely speak English in a big, cosmopolitan capital city like Madrid. It triggered a debate over whether it’s necessary for big cities (where English isn’t the first language) to have basic knowledge of English, or not.

I think it is relative. In non-English speaking metropolises, as long as the tourists put in some effort, lack of basic English may not be an important day-to-day communication hindrance, but it is definitely a disadvantage in the larger scope of things. For example: Madrid is bidding to host the 2016 Olympics — surely the knowledge of English would play an important role there. How is China tackling that issue for next year’s games? Anyway, I digress.

What do you do in an English-speaking country when your customers don’t speak English? Do you put up a sign like our friend did? Hmmm, I don’t think so — it’s quite an insult. The sign reminded me of when the English ruled India and the “No Indians or Dogs” sign was not uncommon. Couldn’t they just be offered picture menus where they could point out what they wanted? Or what about bilingual menus?

There is an online poll on the article asking whether people approve this sign post. At this moment, of the 115,732 people who voted, 92% of them approve. Call me overly sensitive but I’m kinda shocked to see the response.

What do you think? Are signs like that acceptable?

%Poll-7601%

World’s Largest Fondue Planned for New York

by Martha Edwards on

Growing up, fondue was a fixture in my house — a delight for a cheese-loving family and a bit of nostalgia for my dad who spent a large amount of time living near Switzerland. His version of the traditional melting pot involved lots garlic, wine and stinky cheese and man, was it ever good.

And if like me, you can appreciate a good fondue, you might want to head to the New York area next month, when Swiss cheese producer Emmi will try to break the world record for largest fondue. Served from a giant pot, the fondue is expected to feed around 3000 lucky people. Now that‘s a lot of fondue forks. Lucky diners will also be treated to live Swiss-themed entertainment in the form of yodelers and alpine horn players … perhaps even the Ricola dudes?

The last record-setting fondue was served in 1998. It consisted of 732 kg of cheesy deliciousness.

One for the Road: The Year of the Goat

by Kelly Amabile on

Here’s a heads up about a unique road trip memoir hitting shelves next month: The Year of the Goat: 40,000 Miles and the Quest for the Perfect Cheese. The title alone suggests that if you can tell a good story, you can write a travel book on just about any topic these days!

In 2003, six months into the Year of the Goat, Margaret Hathaway and her then-boyfriend Karl Schatz left New York in search of greener pastures. Part food memoir and part travel narrative, the book tells the story of the couple’s fascinating food obsessed journey, introducing a cast of characters that they encounter along the way. Readers can follow along with the “goat mobile” as Margaret and Karl meet with farmers, breeders, cheese makers and chefs, learning everything there is to know about the goats and cheese. Slow food advocates should enjoy this one too, since the story focuses on getting back to the land.

It actually sounds quite charming, and even though goat cheese does nothing for me, I’d consider reading this one. If you can’t wait for the book, there’s a nifty DVD called Goat Love that captures the journey on film. Margaret and Karl are married now, so I guess goat love got to them too!

Videos of Cooper’s Hill Cheese-Rolling and Wake

by Justin Glow on


The 2007 Cooper’s Hill Cheese-Rolling race recently took place, and SoGlos.com has a good recap on the event. The race is named after Cooper’s Hill near Cheltenham and Gloucester in the Cotswolds region of England, and the object is to chase a wheel of Double Gloucester cheese down the very steep hill. Many are injured — see for yourself. [via]


Here’s the uphill race