Britain recalls 35 more products with Para Red dye

Thirty five products contaminated with an illegal red dye Para Red, that has been linked to cancer, were recalled on Thursday by Britain's Food Standards Agency.

The products, mainly pates, curry sauces and chilli sauces sold at several major supermarkets, contained the banned Para Red dye, a dye similar to Sudan 1 which created an international food safety alert earlier this year.

Andrew Wadge, the agency's director of food safety says that Sudan 1 and Para Red are illegal dyes that should not be used in food even though the products contained very low levels of the dye and the health risk was small.

Wadge says it is understandable that people neither expect or want it to be in their food, with the levels being found the risk is very small indeed, but it is right that food businesses are removing these products from sale.

Two weeks ago the agency recalled batches of a Mexican-food seasoning mix containing the Para Red dye and it is expected that the list of contaminated items will grow.

More than 400 products thought to contain Sudan 1, a red dye used for colouring oils, waxes, petrol and shoe polish, were recalled globally in February, after the food agency found a sauce contaminated with the dye had been used in hundreds of British foods and exported to several European and Caribbean countries and to North America.

The agency said Para Red, like Sudan 1, could contribute to an increased risk of cancer, but it was not possible to identify a safe level or to quantify the risk.