What’s in a name? “Sudan” food scare angers country

LONDON, March 2 (Reuters) – Sudan’s ambassador wants to know why a cancer-causing dye that caused a food scare in Britain is named after his country, but no one seems to have an answer.

Britain took 428 sauces, soaps and frozen meals off the shelves last week – the biggest recall in UK history – because a banned dye called Sudan 1 was found in a batch of chilli powder used to make Worcestershire sauce.

But that didn’t please the country of the same name.

Ambassador Hassan Abdin told Reuters his embassy had written to the Food Standards Agency asking for an explanation.

“Our concern is that this could do damage to the image of the country and to its name and exports. The name Sudan is rather unique as the name of the country,” he said on Wednesday.

“There must be an explanation. They are using it. You can’t just use a name without knowing what it means.”

A Food Standards Agency spokeswoman said she was trying to find out exactly how the chemical, which is used as a medical dye but is considered unfit for human consumption in food, got its name. It appears to have been called Sudan 1 since it was discovered by a scientist named Daddi in 1896.

“We weren’t around in 1896. So we weren’t responsible for naming it,” she said.