Pork bun story was a hoax... or was it...

On July 12, I posted a story about the Chinese cooks putting chemically flavored cardboard into steamed pork buns, and now, apparently the Chinese government is saying it was all a rouse, put on by an unethical reporter. The freelance reporter has been detained and confessed to police that he produced the fake story under pressure for having nothing after spending two weeks investigating pork bun quality. The news station where the original story aired issued a profound apology and "vowed to prevent inaccurate news coverage in the future." Check out the new story here.

I, on the other hand, am suspicious of the whole chain of events. This may sound a bit like a tin-foil hat story, but I come from a family that escaped the communist take over of Vietnam. I have been to communist Vietnam and have experienced first hand the power of the communist propaganda machine. With the Olympics coming up in 2008, China has much to lose by letting any negative reports leak out about food, safety, or security. Even in the financial sector, I've heard of many analysts speculate that the Chinese Government would use all its power to prevent any large dip in the Chinese market at least until after the Olympics. And you cannot deny the fact that China doesn't not have a great track record when it comes to free and unadulterated speech. They don't call it "the Great Firewall of China" for nothing. So who's to say they didn't arrest this poor sap and put out the story to clean up his mess. Maybe I do want to go to the Olympics now...if just to verify the story myself. ;)

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Culinary Word of the Day: Canning
Canning is a method of preserving food by first sealing it in air-tight jars, cans or pouches, and then heating it to a temperature that destroys contaminating microorganisms. Because of the danger posed by Clostridium botulinum (the causative agent of botulism) and other pathogens, the only safe method of canning most foods is under conditions of both high heat and pressure, normally at temperatures of 240-250°F (116-121°C). Foods that must be pressure canned include most vegetables, meats, seafood, poultry, and dairy products. The only foods that may be safely canned in a boiling water bath (without high pressure) are highly acidic foods with a pH below 4.6[1], such as fruits, pickled vegetables, or other foods to which acid has been added. Source: Wikipedia