First it was noodle soup, then soy milk. Now vinegar is leaving a sour taste in mainland consumers' mouths after reports of false advertising of many food products.
Most of the vinegars advertised as the well-known 'Shanxi Mature Vinegar' were actually blends of undiluted acetic acid, water and various additives, China National Radio reported over the weekend.
Less than 5 per cent of the so-called 'extra aged vinegar' made in Shanxi, China's vinegar production base, 'is fermented from grains such as sorghum and barley and goes through several months of sedimentation and filtration according to manufacturing standards', an industry association leader was quoted as saying by the broadcaster.
Wang Jianzhong, vice-president of the Shanxi Vinegar Industry Association, said most vinegar used by mainland consumers was blended and made with sodium benzoate, a preservative. 'It may have the words 'extra aged' on its package, but if you look at the ingredients in detail, you will find sodium benzoate,' Wang said. 'As long as there's sodium benzoate, you can be sure that it's not mature vinegar, because mature vinegar doesn't need preservatives.'
But the Shanxi Vinegar Industry Association later distanced itself from Wang's remarks, issuing a statement last night saying that all aged vinegar and extra aged vinegar sold by 'authorised' Shanxi vinegar factories was real, natural and preservative-free.
The association said Wang's 'irresponsible comments' had seriously hurt the development of Shanxi's vinegar industry and tarnished its reputation, adding it might consider taking legal action against him.