China: The country defends its beer against charges it contains cancer-causing agent

The formaldehyde content in one liter of Chinese beer is lower than that in one kilogram of poultry, thus Chinese beer is safe to drink, said a report released by the China Brewing Industry Association on July 14, according to Xinhua News Agency. They said domestic beer contained about the same amount of the chemical as imports.

Quoting a recent report from the State Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine Xinhua News Agency said administration tests on scores of different beer brands showed domestic brews contained up to 0.56 parts per million of formaldehyde, compared to up to 0.61 parts per million for imports.

"Chinese beer is safe to drink as its one-litre formaldehyde content is much lower than the standard set by the World Heath Organization," Xinhua cited the report as saying. The report didn't say which imports had been tested but said the domestic brands tested included best-selling Tsingtao and Yanjing.

Xinhua reported Thursday that one litre of Chinese beer contained, on average, less formaldehyde than one kilogram of chicken, fish or fruit, citing a report from the same government body.

The inspection was prompted by a recent newspaper report claiming 95 per cent of Chinese beers contained formaldehyde, despite the practice being banned by Chinese law.

Beijing's Global Times report cited Gu Guoxian, a deputy director of the Chinese Brewery Industry Society, as saying the levels of formaldehyde in beer were unlikely to harm drinkers' health.

Formaldehyde has reportedly been added to beer in many countries, including the United States. Various reasons are given for its use, from its effectiveness as a preservative and killer of bacteria to its usefulness in breaking down particles that form in beer.

The report, widely picked up by provincial newspapers, caused a temporary dip in brewery stock prices, the newspaper Shanghai Daily reported.

Stock in Tsingtao, which is partly owned by America's Anheuser-Busch, fell 2.16 per cent on Thursday, the report said. The paper also said South Korea had temporarily halted imports of Chinese beer and Japan was demanding safety certificates for imported Chinese brews.

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