A popular instant noodle brand just executed a first-of-its-kind product recall because it was found too spicy for Europeans
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A Danish food regulator recalled a brand of instant noodles, declaring the chewy, umami-filled strings posed a health hazard, despite not having quality control issues. They were too spicy.
The Danish Veterinary and Food Administration (DVFA) made the decision to recall three varieties of the popular Buldak instant noodle brand because they were deemed too heavy on the chili.
The noodles “are being recalled as the levels of total capsaicin in the products pose a risk of acute poisoning,” the Danish agency said in a statement on Tuesday.
Capsaicin is the naturally occurring ingredient that makes chili peppers spicy, and the culprit behind the burning sensation diners either love or hate in a meal.
Buldak noodles are made by Samyang Foods, a South Korean firm that in 2023 saw $2.3 billion in revenue. The word “buldak” means “fire chicken” in Korean, an indication of what awaits within the colorful packaging. The three varieties of noodles that were subject to the recall are Samyang Buldak 3x Spicy & Hot Chicken, Samyang Buldak 2x Spicy & Hot Chicken, and Samyang Buldak Hot Chicken Stew.
The noodle recall was unprecedented for Samyang, according to the company. “This is the first time they’ve been subject to a recall for this reason,” a Samyang spokesperson told CNN. It’s “because it is so spicy that it could cause problems.”
The high levels of spice in Buldak noodles were a risk especially for “children and weak or elderly people if they consume the total capsaicin content in the packages,” a DVFA spokesperson told Fortune.
Are spicy foods dangerous for your health?
For the most part spicy foods containing capsaicin are not dangerous.
However, extremely high levels of capsaicin can cause nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and a burning sensation when ingested, according to the National Capital Poison Center, a nonprofit hotline for poison control guidance.
Some studies have found that regular consumption of spicy foods has health benefits. A 2015 study from China found that people who ate spicy food six to seven times a week showed a ??14% “relative risk reduction in total mortality” compared with people who ate spicy food just once a week. There is also some research suggesting spicy foods can help with weight loss because they reduce appetite and cause the body to expend more energy, thus burning calories. A meta-study analyzing some 90 clinical trials found that eating spicy foods often “would produce clinically significant levels of weight loss in one to two years,” according to a 2012 academic paper.
A noodle brand founded by a former housewife turned CEO
Buldak noodles were the brainchild of Kim Jung-soo, now Samyang Foods’ CEO. Kim had an unlikely rise to the corner office, marrying into the family that owned Samyang Foods, according to an interview in the Wall Street Journal. She was a housewife until the company hit hard times and her father-in-law, Samyang’s then-chairman, urged her to join the business, which she eventually did as head of sales despite having no corporate experience.