Korean Spicy Noodles Recalled Over ‘Health Hazard’

Denmark’s food safety authority ordered packets of Buldak instant noodles to be pulled from store shelves on Tuesday, citing the risk of “acute poisoning” among young children and some adults.Buldak spicy ramen, made by South Korea’s Samyang, has spawned viral food challenges online. The company’s website says the product is now a “global icon.”The Danish Veterinary and Food Administration said in a statement that the noodle recall affects three products imported under the names Samyang Buldak 3 x Spicy & Hot Chicken, Samyang Buldak 2 x Spicy & Hot Chicken and Samyang Buldak Hot Chicken Stew.Young consumers in Denmark have been challenging one another on TikTok and Instagram to “eat a strong bowl of noodle soup,” the agency said. The noodle’s overly high dose of capsaicin, a chili pepper extract, raised concerns.”The challenge involves tolerating the soup’s high content of capsaicin from chili sauce. However, the capsaicin content is so high that it can pose a health hazard,” the Danish food authority said.”Chili in large quantities poses a risk to children and frail adults in particular. Possible symptoms include burning and discomfort, nausea, vomiting and high blood pressure,” Henrik Dammand Nielsen, head of the Danish Food and Drug Administration, said in a press release.The agency has ordered stores to remove the products from their shelves and is encouraging consumers to discard them.”Products that have been recalled may not be sold,” he said.The statement revealed that Buldak ramen imports were assessed after “a puzzled customer” questioned how the spicy instant noodles could be legal to sell.Seoul-based Samyang, one of South Korea’s largest companies, told local media that it understood the product recall related to the spice content rather than the quality of the noodles.It was the first time that one of its products had been recalled for this reason, the company said.Samyang’s representatives in the United States and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration did not immediately respond to separate requests for comment.Samyang was founded in 1961 and released its first Buldak ramen in 2012. The noodles became a viral sensation among young Americans and last month received an endorsement from Grammy-winning rapper Cardi B.The company’s growing market share in the U.S. saw it establish the subsidiary Samyang America in 2021.Shares of Samyang Foods opened at 594,000 Korean won ($433) on Thursday local time and closed 0.82 percent higher than the previous day at 612,000 won ($445).