Bugs in your ramen (1 Viewer)

[Chris Wittry]

I thought that ramen noodles actually were marketed as a collection of bug parts and rat hair. So if they aren't, then why do they taste as shi**y as they do?

 

[Max Leung]

Bug eggs would be a footnote in history if only North Americans would allow irradiation of food (and, guess what, Canada manufactures and markets food irradiation machines to the world)!
You'll never see such a problem from imported Japanese food products...everything is double-bagged and irradiated.
Hmmm, I wonder if Ichiban imported from Japan is "safe", or if they relax their irradiation procedures for North American export?
(insert eloquent rant about crazy North American anti-irradiation groups here)

 

[Brian Harnish]

Anti-irradiation?!?! Doesn't that actually CLEAN the food and sterilize it?! What's so bad about that? Is there actually a danger of consuming radiation if food is irradiated?
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My DVD Collection
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[McPaul]

AHH!! I used to eat Ichiban all the time, thanks MikeH and Max L!!
Still, I like the show better -- no bugs!!
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McPaul.

 

[Glenn Overholt]

Doesn't this kind of blow the whole "I'm a vegetarian" thing all to hell?
Glenn

 

[Julie K]

Irradiation will only mean that the bug eggs won't hatch into live bugs. You can do that right now by tossing foodstuffs into the freezer for a couple of weeks.
Irradiate all you want, but you'll still have insect eggs and parts, and rodent hairs and droppings, in your food.
And oh, BTW, that black stuff you see on celery in the supermarket? That's bug sh*t. Just so you know

Especially when I found out that the "cream filling" for Hostes is roughly sugar and pig fat whipped together.

Well, I might shudder at the sugar part, but why is pig fat bad? It makes for the best fat in pastries and is delicious for frying.
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"Some people think I'm over-prepared, paranoid...maybe even a little crazy. But they never met any pre-Cambrian life forms, did they?"
[Edited last by Julie K on November 15, 2001 at 04:49 AM]

 

[Max Leung]

As far as I know, there is ZERO, I repeat, ZERO chance of getting any kind of radiation poisoning from irradiated food. Yet, the chance of getting a parasite from non-irradiated food is very very large (parasite defined as bochulism, salmonella, etc.) in comparison.
I believe the Europeans routinely irradiate their food, as do the Japanese. I bet that it does cost more to do that though, but the savings in health care alone would more than recupe the costs, and would benefit society as a whole.
Here's some cursory info from the American Council on Science and Health: http://www.acsh.org/publications/boo...rradiated.html
A more informative booklet, in PDF form, is available here: http://www.acsh.org/publications/boo...irradiated.pdf
I find it appalling that anyone would be against this process.

 

[Max Leung]

Irradiation will only mean that the bug eggs won't hatch into live bugs. You can do that right now by tossing foodstuffs into the freezer for a couple of weeks.

Ever try to stuff a months supply of Ramen noodles into a 10 cubic liter freezer box?
I assure you, if you knew about the kinds of parasites that can hide even in dry food, you'd be scrambling to write your congressman to encourage the use of irradiation in all foodstuffs.
However, if you don't want to know, then DO NOT READ the book, "Parasite Rex", by Carl Zimmer. It'll freak you out.

As for me, I'll have to rely on my immune system to catch the bugs (fingers crossed).
I wonder if Anthrax is immune to irradiation? Hmmm....one day I'll look it up...

 

[MikeH1]

I live on ichiban and haven't seen any bugs in my packages. I will say though it will be the last time I ever eat it raw.
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you lose it here and your in a world of hurt...

 

[Julie K]

I assure you, if you knew about the kinds of parasites that can hide even in dry food, you'd be scrambling to write your congressman to encourage the use of irradiation in all foodstuffs.

Sorry Max, but it's no use in trying to freak me out. I do know what is in food and rely on proper food preparation and handling techniques and my own immune system to keep me from harm.
I'm not against irradiation, but I see it as rather unnecessary if one knows how to handle food. After all, humans have survived hundreds of thousands of years without it. It's just the current folks who have seemed to have lost all common sense and knowledge about food.
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My DVDs
"Some people think I'm over-prepared, paranoid...maybe even a little crazy. But they never met any pre-Cambrian life forms, did they?"

 

[Max Leung]

So Julie, what is the commonsense approach to handling twinkies? Hey, I'm sure there is an as-yet-discovered organism on this planet that would love to inhabit it.

At least irradiated food would protect us from parasites that would not normally get into the food...Remember, for hundreds of thousands of years our food did not come from conveyor belts, building-sized food processors, whale-sized tanks, and stored in warehouses or shipping containers for weeks at a time. Not to mention the pesticides we spray on everything, causing previously unknown new parasites to flourish (after the old ones were killed off by the chemicals, leaving a niche in the "ecosystem").
I'm not sure if the human immune system, which took hundreds of thousands of years to combat old parasites, can catch up with the new ones being bred as a result of fast-changing food processing technology.
On the other hand, you are right that it will make us much more ignorant when handling food. The horror stories of travellers getting extremely sick when eating in the less developed countries highlights what can happen when the immune system is ill-prepared because of our Western standards of food preparation. The immune system has no clue how to handle the age-old parasites from the "old world".
So, if you're gonna travel abroad, be really really paranoid about your food...your immune system will thank you!
Unfortunately, I think the world will have no choice but to use irradiation technology. We will need it to feed the projected 16 billion humans that will be on this planet by 2040. Boy are we gonna be in big trouble...

 

[Julie K]

We will need it to feed the projected 16 billion humans that will be on this planet by 2040. Boy are we gonna be in big trouble...

Ain't that the truth...
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My DVDs
"Some people think I'm over-prepared, paranoid...maybe even a little crazy. But they never met any pre-Cambrian life forms, did they?"

 

[Kevin Alexander]

These bugs you are seeing are referred to as stored product pests. They usually infest grains, cereals, flour, pasta, dry dog food, ect.... You can eliminate them by disposing of the contaminated food product(s) in your cabinet or pantry. Most often, this is not a production problem, but a grocery store problem where product rotation and expiration practices are not kept up. These tiny bugs are relatively harmless, but can foul alot of food stuffs over a period of time.
Kevin Alexander - HTF Resident
Licensed Pest Control Operator
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"What does God want with a Starship?" - Captain Kirk from Star Trek V: The Final Frontier.

 

[Dave Poehlman]

This reminds me of a time we dog-sat for my in-laws. We woke up one morning to find these wormy looking things crawling on the ceiling.
Well, we freaked because they were all over the place. We would clean them up and a few minutes later there would be more. So, we called the in-laws vacationing in Florida. Well, they freaked and said call an exterminator. So, we called the exterminator and he said they were some type of moth and it would be $115 for him to come out and spray the place.
As my wife was calling her parents to tell them the cost I found an old box of cheez-it crackers in the cupboard that looked to be "lived-in". So, we tossed it out and no more bugs.
To this day, my mother-in-law seals all of her stuff up in zip-loc bags. (I don't have the heart to tell her that the bugs were probably in there when she bought the cheez-its)

 

[Peter Kim]

Late to this discussion, but wished I never arrived at all. Bugs in my ramen seasoning packages??!!! You gotta' be shitting me! Next thing you'll tell me is that there's no Santa Klaus.
I've never seen any suspicious parts in my ramen. But now that I know...I think I'll have to find another cheap, 50 cent lunch.
Are you guys really sure that there are bugs in my ramen? I eat a lot from Japan, although some from Ichiban made in this country.
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Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana.

 

[Dylan Davis]

I'll never forget the time I went to make a glass of carnation instant breakfast. The "powder" was nothing but maggot carcasses, long dead and dried up..... God it makes me sick to even think about it!

 

[Inspector Hammer!]

I think this may be THE most disgusting thread i've ever read!

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To the men and women of the N.Y. police and fire department
God bless you.
To the victims and their families
God keep you.
To the dirtbags who caused all this
God help you!!!

 

[Marianne]

You'll never see such a problem from imported Japanese food products...everything is double-bagged and irradiated.

... which comes in handy if you need to find your ramen in the dark!
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Marianne

 

[Max Leung]

Hehe Marianne...too bad it isn't true!
You get more radiation exposure looking out of your window than you would eating 10 bags of Wasabi-flavoured dried peas. Or watching a movie with your home theater. Hell I'm sure I soaked up more radiation from staring at my computer monitor than all the x-ray examinations I had at the dentist.
You'll find more radiation at a campsite (from decaying radioactive atoms in the rocks and soil) than you'd find in the parking lot of a nuclear reactor (uh...Chernobyl excepted). Is that ironic or what?

The world is a scary place!
[Edited last by Max Leung on November 17, 2001 at 08:06 PM]

 

[Jon_Are]

Ok, here's my story: Many years ago, when I lived alone, I came home very late, moderately drunk, and extremely hungry. Having next to nothing in the house, food-wise, I pulled down a box of Quaker 100% Natural Cereal to munch on. I sat on the living room floor, watching TV, and ate handful after handful of the stuff in the dark. Eventually, I flicked a light on and was horrified to find my cereal-clutching hand swarming with ants. God knows how many of the little critters I ingested. Haven't eaten the stuff since.
Jon
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