Workers process edible oil at a factory in Boxing county, East China's Shandong Province on January 8, 2024. With the approach of the Spring Festival holidays, which begin on February 10, demand for edible oil is rising, and manufacturers are scaling up production to meet the peak in market demand. Photo: cnsphoto

 
Several Chinese edible oil enterprises released statements on Tuesday, reassuring consumers that their transportation vehicles are only used for delivering edible oil amid the public's rising concerns that domestic oil companies are using tanker trucks to transport both food and chemical liquids.

Shandong Luhua Group, a leading domestic edible oil manufacturer, said  that the company carries out stringent food risk prevention and control for the whole chain, including transportation, and uses its own special tanker trucks for edible oil transportation business. 

Luhua Group noted that the inside and outside walls of the dedicated tankers are thoroughly cleaned and dried before loading products, and the tanker trucks are then inspected and sealed one by one. The oil products will be sampled and tested, and unqualified ones will be rejected for delivery. 

Another cooking oil giant, Yihai Kerry Arawana, said that the company's edible oil is transported after being barreled in its own plant. The company has implemented strict supervision over the transportation of edible oil and does not use other companies' tanker trucks, while transportation vehicles must comply with corresponding requirements to ensure product safety, the Beijing Business Today reported on Tuesday. 

Shanxi Xiwang Food said that the company mainly sells packed corn germ oil, with the packed products being transported through vans instead of tanker trucks, adding that bulk oil only accounts for a small proportion of the company's business and related products are transported via special tanker trucks. 

Sinograin's edible oil products had been removed from Chinese e-commerce platform Taobao by press time on Tuesday morning, after the food company became embroiled in the food safety scandal. 

Several other Chinese oil companies have previously denied using tanker trucks to transport both food and chemical liquids.

The Beijing News revealed in a recent report that  it is an "open secret" in the tanker trucking industry that food liquids and chemical liquids are transported mixed and not cleaned. In a bid to cut cost, many operators do not clean the tanks, and edible oil producers do not check them in line with the regulations, leading to chemical residue and contamination of edible oil.

Global Times