Current Issues and Concerns, Roles and Responsibilities and Food Laws Melaware and the Possible Migration

of Melamine into the Food (FS 101 WFR Group 1) I. Introduction Due to ever changing lifestyle of the people nowadays, and the current economic situation in the Philippines that let the Filipinos tighten their belts when it comes to spending, different food service establishments have risen and give affordability and convenience to the consumers. These establishments, as well as different households, have resorted to plastic plates and utensils, most commonly known as Melawares, in terms of serving their food product. Melawares, or Melamine Dinnerware is composed of melamine resin, basically a combination of melamine, formaldehyde and urea. It had dominated other food containers available in the market not only for its low price value, but also for the known fact that is highly durable, dishwasher safe and does not stain easily. Despite these, melaware can pose a danger to the consumer in terms of health issues. Different case studies conducted by international bodies have searched on the potential migration of melamine and formaldehyde from these melawares to the food product being prepared. Melawares are composed of melamine resin as said earlier. This melamine resin, or thermoset plastic, is a versatile material that has a highly stable structure. But once there would be a failure in the preparation of this resin, and not all the water content is removed, it could be highly unstable and decompose or breakdown to its original components which are melamine, formaldehyde and urea that are toxic when intake in great amounts. Different international researches have looked into the possible migration of formaldehyde and melamine from the melawares to the food product being served and the causes of it. These researches found out that the use of 3% acetic acid as food stimulant can induce the

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risk of melamine and formaldehyde migration to the food. Also, the use of melaware i

The statements above which are in fact unknown to the most of the people are the reasons why the group has decided to look into this issue at hand. The objective of the group is to raise the awareness of the consumers of the possible health hazard brought by the melawares they use especially at this time, when there are high costs of products and Filipinos tend to choose the less priced product. Thus, it is significant to evaluate the safety of melawares to avoid the risks that will face the Filipino families.

II.

Observation of Establishments The group decided to conduct a qualitative survey on three establishments inside the

University of the Philippines Diliman (UPD) Campus with regards to the food presented and served using melawares to look into the possible hazard that the students and employees maybe facing unknowingly. A list of the basic foods that are served and their characteristics (i.e acidity, fat content, and carbohydrates content) were made as to make a clearer evaluation on the food product. These establishments observed were usually jam packed with consumers wanting their breakfast, lunch or any meal for the day. Melawares which are light in terms of weight, durable and does not stain easily are ideal for these establishments to use. But then, as discussed earlier, there is a possible migration of toxic materials caused by improper preparation. The role of the establishments, food products and its characteristics is for the group to know and confirm if there are possible causes of melamine and formaldehyde migration to food intended for human consumption. The group named each establishment as Food Establishment A, B and C to keep the confidentiality of the establishments.

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For the Food Establishment A, food is usually presented using metal trays with separators or dividers. However, soups were served using melaware bowls. As people know, soup is usually served in high temperature and is composed of different ingredients like vegetables, broth and sometimes with pasta. Food Establishment B is composed of different catering services providing students with different types of food meals in a melaware container. Food Establishment C also offers a wide range of food that is affordable for students as well as employees. In this establishment, food is served in a tray with divisions. The usual food served here are pork dumplings, hotdog, ham, egg, rice, vegetables and a lot more. The group tabulated the food products available in these establishments for better analysis on the characteristics of the food usually served using melaware containers. Only food served using melaware were tabulated below like in Food Establishment A, soups served in melaware bowls and its ingredients were listed below. LIST OF FOOD SERVED BASED ON THEIR CHARACTERISTICS

Food Establishment Acidic

Food Characteristics High Fat High Carbohydrate Beans Potato Vegetables Carrot Cabbage Onion Pumpkin Pasta Soup High Temperature

Corn

Butter Margarine

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Bread Corn Meat Beans Fish B Eggs Gravy Broth Butter Onion Margarine Green peas Pork Pizza Rice Burger Cabbage Pastries Potato Cheese Carrot Rice

Meat Fish C Beans

Pork Beef Deep Fried

Rice Pasta Carrot Main Dishes Rice

different cases raise the

considered safe. The group also observed that the average time contact of the food to the melaware container ranges from fifteen (15) to thirty (30) minutes since it is the average time that the food is served and has been eaten by the consumer.

III.

Food Laws Concerned

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The Consumer Act of the Philippines (RA 7494) Article 23 a(6) and the Food, Drug and A VII S 14 (6) A

if its container is composed, in whole or in part, of any poisonous or deleterious substance which may render the contents injurious t

The food served using melaware may be considered adulterated once the melamine and formaldehyde migrates into the food. Also, melamine can be harmful to health, as melamine is "Harmful if swallowed, inhaled or absorbed through the skin. Chronic exposure may cause cancer or reproductive damage" according to its MSDS sheet. (PTCL safety, 2008)

IV.

Roles and Responsibilities of Food Technologists The first role of food technologists regarding this matter is awareness. A part of the food

tech community must be aware that there are issues like this at hand that must be attended to. Next is information dissemination. The people need to know that there are issues like this that will greatly affect their lives. It is also a way for others, if they have the capability and chance to avoid this circumstance. Lastly, is for the food technologists to conduct further researches regarding this matter and to do improvements in melawares. A deeper observation and research in this issue must be done in order to address the flaws in melawares. VI. Summary Today, there is a widely use of melawares in different food establishments as well as in households not only because of its low price value but also because of its durability. But then, every good thing has also its bad sides. What people need to do is to be aware and to as much as possible prevent the use of these melawares if they can. For the manufacturers of these melawares, they need to be honest in the craft they do by following the limit set upon by the government.

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Answers to questions: What are the characteristics of melaware to identify them? What is the use of melamine, ? effects in melaware? Characteristics of Melaware According to an online article of Krista Fabregas, the head of the KidSmartLiving : A q - never see-through - and have a rigid feel. Because

of melamine's durability and scratch-resistance, it's the most common plastic used to make dishes and can be found in a huge variety of colors and decorative designs. Melamine dishes are dishwasher-safe, but not microwaveIntended for Microwave U N

Melawares is composed of melamine resin which when broken down, is composed of melamine, formaldehyde and urea. Formaldehyde and urea serves as the monomer and the melamine as the binder to form the resin. Formaldehyde has this capability to adapt to different forms and can be found naturally in the environment that is why it is the most prominent chemical used for synthesis of more complex compound. Also, when combined with urea, melamine, phenols, formaldehyde creates a thermoset characteristic which in the case of melawares was found to be useful since thermoset plastics are malleable prior to designing and curing until molded to its final form. Since melamine is found to be harmful for the health as well as formaldehyde and urea, the group researched on the possible substitute for these chemicals which can be polyester resin. Polyester resin is an unsaturated resin formed by the reaction of dibasic organic acids and polyhydric alcohols and is also thermosetting.

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Bibliography

Comparison of the Migration of Melamine from Melamine- F

(M

into Various Food Stimulants and Food Itself (2010 December). Retrieved 22 August 2011. Fromwww.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20931418

Migration of Formaldehyde from Melamine-ware: UK 2008 Survey Results (18 May 2010). Retrieved 22 August 2011. From www.tandfonline.com:http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/194400410036 36638

Release of Melamine and Formaldehyde from Dishes and Kitchen Utensils (09 March 2011). Retrieved 22 August 2011. From www.bfr.bund/de:http://www.bfr.bund.de/cm/349/release_of_melamine_and_formaldehy de_from_dishes_and_kitchen_utensils.pdf

Safety Data for Melamine (04 October 2008). Retrieved 22 August 2011. Fromhttp://msds.chem.ox.ac.uk/ME/melamine.html

Scientific Opinion on Melamine in Food and Feed (16 April 2010). Retrieved 22 August 2011. Fromwww.efsa.europa.eu: http://www.efsa.europa.eu/fr/scdocs/doc/1573.pdf

What are the Dangers of Melamine Dinnerware (n.d). Retrieved 22 August 2011. From Kim Norton:http://www.ehow.com/about_5673219_dangers-melamine-dinnerware_.html

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