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Plastic eggs in short eats?

30 Aug 2021

By Dinitha Rathnayake  A claim that a local eatery in Sri Lanka was serving “plastic” eggs has been shared widely on social media, with the posts also including the customer’s alleged experience of the substandard eggs, and advising readers to exercise caution before consuming such products. In one post, the consumer explains that he had purchased a number of short-eats from a longstanding reputed eatery franchise. Upon eating one of the products, they had realised that the white of the egg appeared to be made of plastic, while the yolk, too, appeared unnatural. The consumer stated they had captured a photograph of the product and then taken it back to the outlet to inform them of the anomaly. An employee assured the consumer that they would be contacted about the matter. Another customer had admitted to a similar experience, but surmised that it was not a “plastic” egg, but probably one that had been kept in a freezer for prolonged time before use, adding: “Now there are many better food suppliers than them in the market.” Last year, however, Public Health Inspectors raided an eatery in Vavuniya that prepared short-eats using artificial eggs made from plastic, according to reports. A customer who ordered egg rolls from said hotel had complained about its odd taste, but the shop’s owner had waved it off. The customer had subsequently complained about the matter to the PHI of the Vavuniya Urban Council. The resulting investigation revealed that artificial eggs were being used by the eatery. Noting that he assumed that the eatery owner had done this due to the high price of eggs, the PHI said that strict legal action would be taken against him. However, when The Morning queried Ministry of Trade Secretary Bhadrani Jayawardena about this recent issue, she said she was unaware of these artificial eggs, while the Consumer Affairs Authority (CAA) also rejected these claims, noting that artificial eggs could not be available as egg imports are currently prohibited. “We had the same complaint last year as well; not only about artificial eggs, but plastic rice as well. We investigated these incidents, but we have not received any credible claims of plastic eggs being sold in Sri Lanka,” noted the CAA.  


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