Drums which stored chemicals used to make woks
By Xu Chi |
January 14, 2013, Monday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
THOUSANDS of woks, the most common cooking tool in China, are made from illegally recycled iron drums that once held toxic chemicals, in small workshops in Jiangxi Province, China Central Television reported.
The woks are sold across the country, the report said.
The iron drums, labeled as containers of toxic or corrosive chemicals, are "cleaned" by being burned with fire and then bathed in pools of sulfuric and hydrochloric acid for hours at workshops in Yongte Village of Shangrao County. The drums are cut into the shape of woks and polished, CCTV reported.
Samples of the woks were found to contain excessive levels of heavy metals, including lead, in tests at Jiangxi Province Inspection Center, the program said. People exposed to high levels of lead may suffer damage to their digestive, nervous and reproductive systems.
Workers told CCTV reporters that the business has been producing the woks for years and one workshop can produce 400 to 500 woks in a single day.
They are all sold in markets across the country at 10 yuan (US$1.61) to 20 yuan each. Legal, brand-name woks are commonly sold at prices ranging from 100 yuan to over 1,000 yuan.
According to data from the local industrial and commercial bureau, there are nine registered iron wok companies in the village and they can produce over 490,000 woks each year.
Most of the buyers are restaurants who favor the cheap price and good thermal conductivity, the workers said.
The workers said they didn't use the products themselves as they feared they could still contain some chemicals which may damage their health.
A workshop owner said he purchase the iron drums from chemical factories. "We bought the drums because woks are produced in such processes from all across the country. We just learned from others to do the business," he said.
Drums that held chemical waste could be seen piled up next to a highway near the village. One of them had a label reading that it contained 250 kilogram of methylene chloride, which is toxic and flammable. Another one said it contained corrosive chemicals that can damage the skin.
Although regulations require that iron drums for chemicals to be properly stored and disposed of after they are used, the workshops illegally bought them from chemical companies to recycle the iron, CCTV said.
A worker told the reporters that a drum costing just a few dozen yuan could be used to make more than 10 woks.
The woks are sold across the country, the report said.
The iron drums, labeled as containers of toxic or corrosive chemicals, are "cleaned" by being burned with fire and then bathed in pools of sulfuric and hydrochloric acid for hours at workshops in Yongte Village of Shangrao County. The drums are cut into the shape of woks and polished, CCTV reported.
Samples of the woks were found to contain excessive levels of heavy metals, including lead, in tests at Jiangxi Province Inspection Center, the program said. People exposed to high levels of lead may suffer damage to their digestive, nervous and reproductive systems.
Workers told CCTV reporters that the business has been producing the woks for years and one workshop can produce 400 to 500 woks in a single day.
They are all sold in markets across the country at 10 yuan (US$1.61) to 20 yuan each. Legal, brand-name woks are commonly sold at prices ranging from 100 yuan to over 1,000 yuan.
According to data from the local industrial and commercial bureau, there are nine registered iron wok companies in the village and they can produce over 490,000 woks each year.
Most of the buyers are restaurants who favor the cheap price and good thermal conductivity, the workers said.
The workers said they didn't use the products themselves as they feared they could still contain some chemicals which may damage their health.
A workshop owner said he purchase the iron drums from chemical factories. "We bought the drums because woks are produced in such processes from all across the country. We just learned from others to do the business," he said.
Drums that held chemical waste could be seen piled up next to a highway near the village. One of them had a label reading that it contained 250 kilogram of methylene chloride, which is toxic and flammable. Another one said it contained corrosive chemicals that can damage the skin.
Although regulations require that iron drums for chemicals to be properly stored and disposed of after they are used, the workshops illegally bought them from chemical companies to recycle the iron, CCTV said.
A worker told the reporters that a drum costing just a few dozen yuan could be used to make more than 10 woks.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
