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China is inquiring into allegations of use of ‘gutter oil’ to make antibiotics, even as officials said they are looking into firms that reportedly used cheaper gutter oil rather than the more expensive soybean oil in the production process. According to the BBC, gutter oil is reprocessed kitchen waste dredged from restaurant drains. The government said it would release its findings soon, and did not give further details. It is not clear whether these antibiotics pose a risk to public health, but the incident highlights how some firms take an easy way out to make profits, the report said. According to the report, in April, state-run media reported on how officials cracked down on underground workshops that used decomposing animal fat and organs to produce gutter oil. Police said that most of the oil was sold to oil manufacturers for food production and making hotpot soup in restaurants. In September last year, police also arrested 32 people in an operation to prevent the sale of gutter oil as cooking oil, the report added.

China inquiry into use of ‘gutter oil’ in making antibiotics