The Northwest Times

Four Brands Scratched Off 'Bad' List in San Francisco

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., July 22 (Nichi Bei Times Dispatch)—Four brands of shoyu were declared off the quarantine list here by San Francisco health authorities last weekend and the state will be asked to confiscate all supplies of another brand as tests continued in many laboratories throughout California.

Zest brand and Bunka sauce, bottled by Yamate Bros. of San Francisco were cleared by local health authorities with the local Chinese Wing Uien brand and nationally distributed La Choy brand.

Another S. F. Case

Following a report last week of the poisoning of Mr. and Mrs. R. Oishi, 1623½ Buchanan st, the shoyu sauce they had been using was examined and found to contain 13½ grains of arsenic to a pint.

Dr. J. C. Geiger, S. F. public health director, announced Thursday that all stock of this shoyu, Marusei brand bottled by Greenwood Trading company of Oakland, which is now in the city, permanently quarantined.

Just two grains of arsenic an ounce is considered a lethal dose and it was also explained arsenic is a cumulative substance in the human body so that the more tainted shoyu is consumed the greater the dose.

Stock Destroyed

Meanwhile officials at the A. E. Staley company, manufactures of the tainted sauce, said about 200 barrels of the poisoned shoyu had been traced to one container in which caustic soda was used.

The company has frozen all shipments and will destroy all forms of the sauce in its warehouse.

Illinois Firm Issues Policy

DECATUR, III.—The Staley Manufacturing Co. this week issued a statement in which it said that its product is shipped in bulk for repacking by merchandisers and that the company is confident the material supplied by it was wholesome.

"Nevertheless, the company is cooperating with the health authorities in every way possible to locate the source of the difficulty," the statement said. "In addition to the checks being made in the Decatur laboratory, Staleys has retained a reliable consulting laboratory in Los Angeles to make a thorough study of the matter."

The Staley Co. said that no material containing arsenic is used in the manufacture of the soya sauce and that no arsenic is used against pests at the Staley Co. and that it knows of no use of arsenic in the fields.