[VIDEO] You Will Lose Your Appetite Not Long After Watching This Oily China Video

Published by Judith Yeoh — 31 Oct 2013, 04:19 PM — Updated over 3 years ago

The Washington Post recently highlighted the "illegal and utterly disgusting problem of gutter oil" in China. Now, wouldn't you like to know where it comes from?

• Washington Post Recently Highlighted "The Illegal And Utterly Disgusting Problem Of Gutter Oil" In China
  • China's food safety problems have no better symbol than the illegal and utterly disgusting problem of gutter oil. Cooking oil is used heavily in Chinese food, so some street vendors and hole-in-the-wall restaurants buy cheap, black market oil that's been recycled from garbage.

     washingtonpost.com

• "Gutter Oil," "Black Market Oil," - Call It Whatever You Want, This Oil Is Sourced From...

  • Enterprising men and women will go through dumpsters, trash bins, gutters and even sewers, scooping out liquid or solid refuse that contains used oil or animal parts. Then they process that into cooking oil, which they sell at below-market rates to food vendors who use it to cook food that can make you extremely sick.

     businessinsider.com

• ...A Hole In The Ground (More Specifically, From The Longkang, Sewers And Grease Traps)

  • • Image via businessinsider.com
      A woman in Shenzhen pulling "slop" from a gutter.

• The Waste Is Then Processed With Animal Fat, Then Sold As Cooking Oil And Fed To You

  • Gutter Oil refers to a process of pulling waste oil from sewers, grease traps, waste from slaughterhouses, reprocessing it and then selling it as cooking oil.

     businessinsider.com
  • • Image via businessinsider.com
      The processing of gutter oil.
  • • Image via tayloreason.com
      An illustration of street food in China.
  • • Image via washingtonpost.com
      An illustration of street food sold in China, cooked with gutter oil.

• WATCH THE 2-MINUTE DOCUMENTARY: The Making Of "Gutter Oil"

• There Are Serious Health Concerns Associated With Gutter Oil, It Can Contribute To The Risk Of Liver Cancer

  • Aside from the ick factor, there are serious health concerns associated with gutter oil. It can be contaminated with the fungus aflatoxin, which can contribute to the risk of liver cancer.

     time.com
  • Gutter oil is filled with carcinogens and can cause severe abdominal pain and diarrhoea to anyone who eats food prepared with gutter oil.

     theatlanticcities.com
  • • Image via imgur.com
      A woman in Shenzhen tugging at a man hole lid in China.
  • • Image via imgur.com
      A woman and man in Shenzhen, China, obtaining waste from the gutter.
  • • Image via businessinsider.com
      A man reaching into a man hole in China. Photo from CuriousGeoff via Flickr.

• This Process Is Illegal And Is Something Chinese Authorities Are Trying To Stop

  • The processing and selling of gutter oil is thought to be widespread. Being reprocessed garbage and sewage, gutter oil contains all sorts of untold carcinogens. Many of the operations, like the one shown in the video, are small-time. But there's enough money to be made that some producers go much bigger.

     washingtonpost.com
  • • Image via wordpress.com
      Police inspect illegal cooking oil seized during a crackdown in Beijing on August 2, 2010 (Photo: AFP / Getty Images).

• In April 2013, Chinese Authorities Uncovered A Gutter Oil Production Ring Of 3,200 Tons "The Stuff"

  • In April, Chinese authorities uncovered a gutter oil production ring that spanned 13 cities and over 100 people, who somehow acquired rotten animal parts and boiled down the fat into oil.

     businessinsider.com
  • The sting, which came after a five-month investigation, yielded 3,200 tons of the stuff; authorities estimated the black-market producers had already sold a stunning $1.6 million worth of their product.

     theatlanticcities.com

• The Gutter Oil Phenomenon Is Not New; In 2011, A Journalist Reporting On The Gutter Oil Scandal Was Stabbed More Than 10 Times

  • A Chinese journalist reporting on a scandal surrounding illegal cooking oil was found stabbed to death in September 2011.

     nytimes.com
  • • Image via whatsonxiamen.com
      Li Xiang, a 30-year-old reporter for Luoyang TV, was stabbed 10 times outside the gate of his community as he returned home from a night out with friends at a karaoke bar. (File Photo)
  • Li Xiang, 30, a reporter with Luoyang Television Station in the central province of Henan, was knifed more than 10 times early Monday as he returned home from a karaoke session with friends, the Zhengzhou Evening News reported.

     chinapost.com.tw

• So The Next Time You Buy Street Food In China...

  • • Image via timeout.com
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