Gutter oil

The first documented case of gutter oil in Taiwan was reported in 1985. In a subsequent investigation, 22 people were arrested for involvement in a recycling oil ring over 10 years based in Taipei. The worst offender was sentenced to 7 years in prison.{{cite news|url=http://udn.com/NEWS/BREAKINGNEWS/BREAKINGNEWS1/8915972.shtml|title=29年前台灣餿水油 最高判7年|trans-title=29 years ago, Taiwan gutter oil sentenced to up to seven years|work= UDN|date=4 September 2014|archive-date=8 October 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141008094327/http://udn.com/NEWS/BREAKINGNEWS/BREAKINGNEWS1/8915972.shtml|language=zh}}

The first documented case of gutter oil in mainland China was reported in 2000, when a street vendor was found to be selling oil obtained from restaurant garbage disposals.He Jiangyong and Liu Ziqian, [http://www.newschinamag.com/magazine/sick-slick "Sick Slick"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140908225412/http://www.newschinamag.com/magazine/sick-slick |date=8 September 2014 }}, NewsChina Magazine, December 2011.

Some street vendors and restaurants in China are reported to have illegally used recycled oil unfit for human consumption to cook food.Tian Peng, Sun Lichao [http://www.eeo.com.cn/ens/2011/1114/215679.shtml "Cooking Oil's Final Destination"]. The Economic Observer 14 November 2011{{cite news |date=9 October 2013 |title=Chinese gutter oil producer jailed for life |url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/china/2013-10/09/c_132783008.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150113113457/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/china/2013-10/09/c_132783008.htm |archive-date=13 January 2015 |access-date=21 May 2015 |newspaper=Xinhau}}Mark Astley [http://www.foodqualitynews.com/Public-Concerns/Chinese-officials-arrest-more-than-100-in-rotten-meat-based-gutter-oil-crackdown Chinese officials arrest more than 100 in rotten meat-based 'gutter oil' crackdown] Food Quality News, 5 April 2012[http://www.china.org.cn/china/2012-05/24/content_25462528.htm 'Proposals pouring in for testing gutter oil'], China Daily, 24 May 2012.

In 2010, it was estimated that gutter oil represented 10% of China's edible oil market (with 1 in every 10 restaurants using it) and that 3 million tonnes of gutter oil were consumed in China annually,[https://web.archive.org/web/20110103010843/http://dailynews.sina.com/bg/news/int/kwongwah/20100319/02311277128.html 坑渠油回鍋 中國人年吃300萬噸砒霜 [Chinese people eat 3 million tons of arsenic every year]] Guanghua Daily March 19, 2010 with a network of distributors of gutter oil across central and eastern China. In 2011, the Chinese government began a major crackdown on the re-use of gutter oil for human consumption.{{Cite magazine |last=Ramzy |first=Austin |date=2011-09-13 |title=China Cracks Down on "Gutter Oil," a Substance Even Worse Than its Name |url=https://world.time.com/2011/09/13/china-cracks-down-on-gutter-oil-a-substance-even-worse-than-its-name/ |access-date=2024-08-20 |magazine=Time |issn=0040-781X}} In 2011, they had arrested 32 people for producing the oil and had seized 90 tonnes of it in 14 provinces. This amount is equivalent to that of around one-tenth of oil typically used by restaurants.{{cite news|newspaper=The Economist|url=http://www.economist.com/node/21534812|title=In the gutter|date=29 October 2011}} As Feng Ping of the China Meat Research Center has said: "The illegal oil shows no difference in appearance and indicators after refining and purification, because the law breakers are skillful at coping with the established standards."Andrew Shen [http://articles.businessinsider.com/2011-10-18/news/30292607_1_cooking-oil-waste-oil-yuan "China's Ministry of Health Just Inadvertently Green Lighted The Gutter Oil Industry"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130511043221/http://articles.businessinsider.com/2011-10-18/news/30292607_1_cooking-oil-waste-oil-yuan |date=11 May 2013 }}. Business Insider 18 October 2011

In September 2012, an ongoing investigation into the suspected use of gutter oil as a raw material in the Chinese pharmaceutical industry was revealed.{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-19462349 |title=China probes 'gutter oil in medicine' claims |publisher=BBC News |date=3 September 2012 |access-date=7 October 2013}} A scandal involving 240 tons of gutter oil in Taiwan affecting hundreds of companies and thousands of eateries, some of which may have been exported overseas, broke in September 2014.[http://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1586065/taiwans-premier-bans-sale-235-food-companies-products-gutter-oil-scandal "Taiwan's Premier Bans Sale 235 Food Companies Products Gutter Oil Scandal"]. South China Morning Post

In 2018, researchers worked on identifying different components in gutter oil using 1H NMR (proton nuclear magnetic resonance), MALDI-MS (matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization-mass spectrometry) and HPLC (high-performance liquid chromatography).

Chinese law states that industrial-grade animal fat is not allowed for use in food products because it does not meet basic hygiene standards and may contain high levels of potentially toxic contaminants.Ankush Chibber [http://www.foodnavigator-asia.com/Policy/Edible-oil-or-industrial-oil-in-China "Edible oil or industrial oil in China"]. Food Navigator Asia, 25 May 2012 The national and local governments are researching ways to test and identify gutter oil but {{as of|2012|lc=y}} there were no nationwide standards in place to help with this process. The government is looking into methods that rely on technical equipment as well as on-site instant tests to screen suspect oil. There are five proposed tests for gutter oil but each has failed to accurately detect it.

Due to China's vast industry of factories involved with legal waste oil processing to create products like plastics, rubbers, fuels, soaps, etc., there have been abundant rumors and allegations about unscrupulous middlemen selling gutter oil for cooking and frying.{{Cite journal|last=Lu|first=Fangqi|date=13 January 2014|title=China food safety hits the "gutter"|url=http://ssu.ac.ir/cms/fileadmin/user_upload/Mtahghighat/tfood/ARTICLES/koliat/China_food_safety_hits_the_%E2%80%9Cgutter%E2%80%9D.pdf|journal=Food Control |volume=41|pages=134–138|doi=10.1016/j.foodcont.2014.01.019|quote=The industrial chain of gutter oil has multiple links, so convicting people in the different links is difficult. Merely modifying the raw gutter oil is illicit. However, deep-processing gutter oil may not constitute an offence because it can be used to produce rubber, soap and bio-fuel. The sale of gutter oil as cooking oil may constitute a crime, but this link is underground. Therefore, in China, there are many rumours about gutter oil processing, but cases are infrequently prosecuted.}} However, it remains difficult to prove and prosecute such profiteers. Food safety articles funded by PRC provincial science grants attribute continued difficulties in regulatory enforcement to the decentralized nature of the logistics chain, inadequate national infrastructure for disposal/recycling, and frequent innovations in visually and chemically disguising gutter oil.{{Cite journal|last=Lu|first=Fangqi|date=13 January 2014|title=China food safety hits the "gutter"|url=http://ssu.ac.ir/cms/fileadmin/user_upload/Mtahghighat/tfood/ARTICLES/koliat/China_food_safety_hits_the_%E2%80%9Cgutter%E2%80%9D.pdf|journal=Food Safety}}

In August and September 2011, the Beijing city government passed two new sets of regulations. The first was "On Accelerating the City's Food Waste and Waste Oil Recycling Program". Its goals are to increase daily food waste processing to 2,200 tons by 2012 and to 2,900 tons by 2015. Additionally, the intent of the regulations is to create a system that "should be a unified, standardized, and orderly processing of waste oil collection and improvement of the transportation system".Tian Peng, Sun Lichao [http://www.eeo.com.cn/ens/2011/1114/215679.shtml "Cooking Oil's Final Destination"]. The Economic Observer 14 November 2011 The second set of regulations by the city of Beijing, called the "Beijing Municipal Solid Waste Regulations", was passed in September 2011. The regulations specifically target the two sources of gutter oil: food waste and used oil. The central government intends for these two sets of regulations to serve as national examples, yet wants every municipality nationally to find their own solutions to the food waste and gutter oil problem.[http://www.china.org.cn/china/2012-05/24/content_25462528.htm 'Proposals pouring in for testing gutter oil'], China Daily, 24 May 2012.

A nationwide campaign was set in motion in August 2011 to crack down on the widespread production and selling of gutter oil. The law enforcement campaign uncovered 100 gutter oil manufacturers and arrested more than 800 people allegedly involved in the production and sale of gutter oil. In April 2012, another crackdown occurred with an additional 100 arrests made and 13 illegal workshops closed down across four provinces.Mark Astley [http://www.foodqualitynews.com/Public-Concerns/Chinese-officials-arrest-more-than-100-in-rotten-meat-based-gutter-oil-crackdown Chinese officials arrest more than 100 in rotten meat-based 'gutter oil' crackdown] Food Quality News, 5 April 2012 According to a notice released jointly by the Supreme People's Court, the Supreme People's Procuratorate and the Ministry of Public Security, the death penalty will now be an option when prosecuting more serious cases of gutter oil manufacturing in the country. More severe punishments will also be given out to government and public officials who fail to properly address matters related to gutter oil. The State Council said inspectors would target edible oil trade fairs and wholesale markets and called for inspections of oil being used at restaurants, school cafeterias, work canteens and kitchens at construction sites. The State Council also stated that businesses that use recycled oil would be forced to close temporarily or lose their business license while peddlers who sell the oil could be criminally prosecuted.Xinhua News Agency [http://www.china.org.cn/china/2012-02/24/content_24718208.htm Death penalties considered for 'gutter oil' crimes] 24 February 2012Laurie Burkitt, [https://blogs.wsj.com/chinarealtime/2012/04/03/chinese-gutter-oil-attains-new-level-of-gross/ Chinese Gutter Oil Attains New Level of Gross], The Wall Street Journal, China Real Time Report, 3 April 2012. In October 2013, a man from eastern China's Jiangsu Province was sentenced to life imprisonment for profiting heavily from making and selling gutter oil.{{cite news |date=9 October 2013 |title=Chinese gutter oil producer jailed for life |url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/china/2013-10/09/c_132783008.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150113113457/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/china/2013-10/09/c_132783008.htm |archive-date=13 January 2015 |access-date=21 May 2015 |newspaper=Xinhau}}

In January 2014, Zhu Chuanfeng was sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve, and his brothers Zhu Chuanqing and Zhu Chuanbo were sentenced to life in prison for selling gutter oil.{{Cite web |title=Ten jailed for producing, selling 'gutter oil' - China - Chinadaily.com.cn |url=https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2014-01/07/content_17221740.htm |access-date=2023-02-23 |website=www.chinadaily.com.cn}}

Entire illicit supply chains dedicated to collecting, processing, and reselling gutter oil have been discovered by regulators in China.{{Cite journal|last=Lu|first=Fangqi|date=13 January 2014|title=China food safety hits the "gutter"|url=http://ssu.ac.ir/cms/fileadmin/user_upload/Mtahghighat/tfood/ARTICLES/koliat/China_food_safety_hits_the_%E2%80%9Cgutter%E2%80%9D.pdf|journal=Food Safety}} Multiple low-end restaurants in China have been found to cook with gutter oil.{{cite news| url = https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-food-security/china-to-ramp-up-crack-down-on-gutter-oil-idUSKBN17Q18O| title = China to ramp up crack-down on 'gutter oil'| newspaper = Reuters| date = 24 April 2017}}{{cite web| url = https://www.theatlantic.com/china/archive/2013/10/chinas-frightening-unpleasant-cooking-oil-scandal/281000/| title = China's Frightening, Unpleasant Cooking-Oil Scandal - The Atlantic| website = The Atlantic| date = 30 October 2013}}{{cite web| url = https://www.scmp.com/news/china/society/article/2091125/chinese-restaurant-staff-jailed-cooking-gutter-oil| title = Chinese restaurant staff jailed for cooking with 'gutter oil' {{!}} South China Morning Post| date = 27 April 2017}} Additionally, in 2012, the Chinese government accused a Chinese pharmaceutical company of using gutter oil as a precursor for the manufacturing of cephalosporin antibiotics.{{cite web |title=Chinese drug makers accused of using 'gutter oil' {{!}} News {{!}} Chemistry World |url=https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/chinese-drug-makers-accused-of-using-gutter-oil-/5413.article}} About two to three million tons of cooking oil containing cancerous substances are produced in China each year.{{Cite web |title=打击地沟油是否该有新思路-中国青年报 |url=http://zqb.cyol.com/html/2011-12/20/nw.D110000zgqnb_20111220_1-05.htm |access-date=2024-09-09 |website=zqb.cyol.com}} In 2010 it was estimated that approximately one tenth of the meals consumed by people in China could contain gutter oil.

Collected waste oil is sold to local workshops or small factories for cleaning and packaging. When sold to workshops it is often transported by bicycle mounted collectors; afterwards, the oil is held in 200-liter barrels at the workshops until it is processed.Alexa Olesen [http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/07/20/gutter-oil-china-sounds-a_n_652398.html "Gutter Oil: China Sounds Alarm Over Filthy Cooking Oil"]. Huffington Post, 20 July 2010 On other occasions the oil goes to industrial cooking oil refineries for further processing before it finally reaches its end purpose.

Reprocessing of used cooking oil is often very rudimentary; techniques include filtration, boiling, refining, and the removal of some adulterants.Qian Ye, Xiaofang Pei [http://www.aocs.org/Membership/FreeCover.cfm?itemnumber=18028 Methods for differentiating recycled cooking oil needed in China] AOCS It is then packaged and resold as a cheaper alternative to normal cooking oil.Fangqi Lu, Xuli Wu [https://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=en&as_sdt=0%2C39&q=gutter+oil&btnG=#d=gs_qabs&u=%23p%3DHg4-TF6H2P0J] AOCS

Another version of gutter oil uses discarded animal parts, animal fat and skins, internal organs, and expired or otherwise low-quality meat, which is then cooked in large vats to extract the oil.Cao Yin and Luo Wangshu, [http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2012-04/04/content_14975475.htm "Rotting meat used to make illegal oil"], China Daily, 4 April 2012.

Some lower-market restaurants have long-term purchase agreements with oil recyclers for selling their used oil.David Barboza [https://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/01/world/asia/01shanghai.html?_r=1 Recycled Cooking Oil Found to Be Latest Hazard in China] The New York Times, 31 March 2010 Low-end restaurants and street vendors are the biggest end users of gutter oil, as they operate with lower profit margins than bigger restaurants. Oil is a large kitchen supply cost for some restaurants, so obtaining cheaper oil can allow a marginal restaurant to reduce its overall expenses. Chinese food is generally heavily dependent on oil due to most foods being fried, so cheaper meal prices for many price-sensitive consumers are possible if gutter oil is used instead of virgin oil.Xinhua News Agency, [https://web.archive.org/web/20111202060814/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/indepth/2011-09/14/c_131138019.htm Our kitchens must be freed from gutter oil], 14 September 2011. The situation becomes more serious because it is hard to distinguish reprocessed gutter oil from legitimate oil. Bleach is used to transform gutter oil's dark color into a more natural-looking one, and alkali additives are used to neutralize the abnormal pH caused by high concentrations of animal fats.

Used kitchen oil can be purchased for between $859 and $937 per ton{{Ambiguous|reason=Should specify which currency this figure is in as multiple currencies use the dollar sign.|date=March 2025}}, while the cleaned and refined product can sell for $1,560 per ton.{{Ambiguous|reason=Should specify which currency this figure is in as multiple currencies use the dollar sign.|date=March 2025}}Li Li [http://www.bjreview.com.cn/nation/txt/2011-11/14/content_405509.htm In the Tank, Not on the Table] The Beijing Review 17 November 2011 Thus there is great economic incentive to produce and sell gutter oil.

Gutter oil has been shown to be toxic, causing diarrhea and abdominal pain. Long-term consumption of gutter oil may cause many foodborne illnesses because the oil may contain excessive amounts of cholesterol, trans-fats, toxic heavy metals and pathogens such as bacteria, but also carcinogenic substances such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and aflatoxins, and therefore lead to stomach and liver cancer.Austin Ramzy, [https://world.time.com/2011/09/13/china-cracks-down-on-gutter-oil-a-substance-even-worse-than-its-name/ China Cracks Down on "Gutter Oil," a Substance Even Worse Than its Name], Time, 13 September 2011. Zeng Jing of the Guangdong Armed Police Hospital said of gutter oil: "Animal and vegetable fat in refined waste oil will undergo rancidity, oxidation and decomposition after contamination. It will cause indigestion, insomnia, liver discomfort and other symptoms."

Due to rumours and the fear of Chinese customers of restaurants using gutter oil in their cooking, it has been reported that some people in China have resorted to bringing their own cooking oil with them from home into restaurants and instructing chefs to use their home-brought oil in their kitchen when preparing their food instead of the restaurant's own cooking oil.{{Cite news|date=2015-04-06|title=下水から作る「再生食用油」を根絶せよ！：日経ビジネスオンライン|work=日経ビジネスオンライン |url=http://business.nikkeibp.co.jp/article/world/20100326/213635/|access-date=2020-09-10|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150406105707/http://business.nikkeibp.co.jp/article/world/20100326/213635/|archive-date=6 April 2015 |last1=豊 |first1=北村 }}

Legitimate producers of gutter oil sell the processed oil for use in the chemical or energy industries. However, such refiners can also have illegal side business, as the prices attained by selling it as cooking oil are much higher than if it is sold to the chemical or energy industries such as KBR Energy.

Yellow and brown grease typical of gutter oil are acceptable raw feedstocks for products not intended for human consumption, such as plastics, rubber, rooftops, soap, cosmetics, and bio-fuel.{{Cite web|last=thebeijinger|date=2014-04-24|title=Ecology: Squeaky Clean Gutter Oil?|url=https://www.thebeijinger.com/blog/2014/04/24/ecology-squeaky-clean-gutter-oil|access-date=2020-09-10|website=www.thebeijinger.com}}{{Cite web|title=Over 2,000 Shanghai buses to run on biodiesel made from gutter oil - Xinhua {{!}} English.news.cn|url=http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2019-05/07/c_138040692.htm|access-date=2020-09-10|website=www.xinhuanet.com|archive-date=11 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200811231753/http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2019-05/07/c_138040692.htm|url-status=dead}}{{Cite web|last=hermesauto|date=2018-08-24|title=Start-up in China turns gutter oil into green fuels, tackling problem of reuse by eateries|url=https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/east-asia/startup-in-china-turns-gutter-oil-into-green-fuels-tackling-problem-of-reuse-by|access-date=2020-09-10|website=The Straits Times}}{{Cite web|title=MotionEco launches Chinese project to turn gutter oil into biofuel|url=https://www.ofimagazine.com/news/ecomotion-launches-chinese-project-to-turn-gutter-oil-into-biofuel|access-date=2020-09-10|website=Oils & Fats International|archive-date=22 September 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200922033510/https://www.ofimagazine.com/news/ecomotion-launches-chinese-project-to-turn-gutter-oil-into-biofuel|url-status=dead}}{{Cite journal|last=Karmee|first=Sanjib Kumar|date=2016-09-27|title=Fuel not food—towards sustainable utilization of gutter oil|journal=Biofuels|volume=8|issue=3|pages=339–346|doi=10.1080/17597269.2016.1231952|bibcode=2017Biofu...8..339K |s2cid=113998189|issn=1759-7269}}

In the city of Shanghai, it was reported that over 2,000 buses ran on biodiesel that was made from gutter oil, and many gas stations in Shanghai offered gasoline that was produced in part from gutter oil.{{Cite web|title=Gutter oil target to be met as gas sales grow|url=https://www.shine.cn/news/metro/1809142104/|access-date=2020-09-10|website=SHINE}} Sustainable utilization of gutter oil for biofuel production is being explored using different chemical and enzymatic methods.{{cite journal|title=Fuel not food—towards sustainable utilization of gutter oil|last1=Karmee|first1=Sanjib Kumar |doi=10.1080/17597269.2016.1231952 |volume=8|issue=3 |date= 2017|journal=Biofuels |pages=339–346|bibcode=2017Biofu...8..339K |s2cid=113998189}}

Gutter oil has also been used outside of China as well, albeit not for human consumption. For example, in England, fatbergs that were dug out of sewers in cities like London and Liverpool were later reported to be processed to produce biofuel.{{Cite web|last=September 2017|first=Mindy Weisberger 19|title=London's 143-Ton 'Fatberg' Gets Second Chance As Biofuel|url=https://www.livescience.com/60446-london-fatberg-converted-to-biofuel.html|access-date=2020-09-10|website=livescience.com|date=19 September 2017 }}{{Cite web|title=90-tonne fatberg in Liverpool to be converted into biofuels {{!}} Biofuels International Magazine|url=https://biofuels-news.com/news/90-tonne-fatberg-in-liverpool-to-be-converted-into-biofuels/|access-date=2020-09-10|website=biofuels-news.com|date=21 February 2019 }}

• Food safety incidents in China
• Food safety incidents in Taiwan

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