2011.05.07 食品安全需注意

zdenny0001

   漱石の「坊っちゃん」に、坊っちゃんと盟友の山嵐が牛鍋をつつく場面がある。江戸っ子の坊っちゃんは何かにつけて気が短いらしい。会津っぽの山嵐は「そこの所はまだ煮えていないぜ。そんなのを食うと条虫（さなだむし）が湧くぜ」と注意する▼実際にその心配があったかどうかはおいて、確かな冷蔵技術もない時代である。生ものへの警戒心は今より強かったのだろう。もう聞くことも少ないが、「鯖（さば）の生き腐れ」や「夏の鰯（いわし）で足が早い」など、用心を促す言い習わしも色々と流布していた▼そんな場面や諺（ことわざ）を思い出させる、焼き肉チェーン店の集団食中毒だ。生肉のユッケを食べた４人が死亡し、２０人を超す重症者が出ている。K札が捜査に着手し、人気の生食への信頼は揺らいでいる▼生食用の表示がなくても、店で衛生基準どおり調理すれば客に出せる。だが基準は行政指導にとどまり罰則はなく、店によっては厨房（ちゅうぼう）という密室で形骸化していたようだ。お上の規制がすべてではないが、これでは「食の安全」も神話のように覚束（おぼつか）ない▼古来、危ない食べ物の代表といえばフグだが、あの美味を好んだ人は多い。〈男の子われ河豚（ふぐ）に賭けたる命かな〉日野草城。しかし現代の、家族や仲間で囲む焼き肉である。その席が「肝試し」になるようでは客はかなわない▼冒頭の山嵐の忠告に坊っちゃんは「大抵大丈夫だろう」と答える。自分で食べるならそれでいい。しかし業者や政府が「大抵大丈夫」では困る。「大抵」を取り去る策が急務だ。

  夏目漱石的小说《哥儿》中，有一段讲的是主人公“哥儿”和好友山岚一起吃牛肉火锅。江户出生的哥儿不管做什么事都很心急，来自会津的山岚提醒他说：“那边的肉还没煮熟呢，吃了会长寄生虫的。”▼不管吃了是否真会长虫，那个年代还没有可靠的冷藏技术。人们对于生食的戒备心理想必比现在要重得多。“青花鱼看着新鲜其实已经不能吃”，“夏天的沙丁鱼烂得快”之类的俗语现在虽然很少听到了，当时提醒大家注意食品卫生的各种俗语可是广为流传。▼最近发生的连锁烧烤店食物中毒事件让人联想起了前述的小说场景和过去的谚语。食用生拌牛肉的顾客中已有4人死亡，20多人严重食物中毒。警方已介入此案调查，人们对很有人气的生食料理的信心开始动摇。▼就算食材没有标示可以生食，但如果店家能够严格按照卫生标准来烹饪的话，拿来招待顾客应该不会出什么问题。然而所谓的卫生标准并没有行政法规级别的惩治措施，于是某些店内，食品卫生安全标准就在见不得人的厨房里开始形同虚设。虽然不是所有的规定条款都是如此，但如今“食品安全”也成了神话故事般让人心生疑虑。▼自古以来一说起危险的美食，河豚鱼颇具代表性，喜欢吃河豚鱼的大有人在。著名俳句诗人日野草城曾写道：“身为男子汉，拼死吃河豚”。然而我们现在讨论的可是和家人、朋友一起围坐吃的烤肉。如果这种场合还要比拼“不怕死的胆量”，作为顾客就忍无可忍了。▼回到开头的小说场景，对于山岚的忠告，哥儿回答道：“大概不要紧的。”如果是自己吃的东西也就罢了，可开餐馆的和政府管理部门也这样“大概不要紧的”就很让人头疼了。当务之急就是制定法规消除这些“大概”因素。

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粗陋译文，敬请各位指正！

zdenny0001

   In the novel "Botchan" by Soseki Natsume (1867-1916), there is a scene where the protagonist and his colleague, Yama-arashi, dine together on sukiyaki. The beef needs to be simmered in the pot at the table, but the protagonist, being a typical impatient Edokko (Tokyoite), starts digging in before the meat is fully cooked. Yama-arashi, who is from Aizu (present-day western Fukushima Prefecture) and more laid back, admonishes him: "Hey, that meat isn't done yet. You're going to get a tapeworm from that."
   Whether his ominous pronouncement was justified or not, it is a fact that there were no refrigerators in Soseki's time. When it came to eating perishables, people must have been much more careful than we are today. In fact, there were all sorts of sayings back then--now practically obsolete--that warned people to watch out for food spoilage. For instance, "saba no ikigusare" (literally "live, rotting mackerel") and "natsu no iwashi" (summer sardine) implied that fish spoiled faster than people thought.
    I was reminded of these expressions as well as the scene from Soseki's novel by the recent string of food poisoning cases at a chain of yakiniku restaurants. Four people have died from eating "yukhoe" or seasoned raw beef, and more than 20 taken violently ill. With police now investigating the restaurants, the public’s faith in the safety of this popular delicacy has been badly shaken.
    Restaurants are allowed to serve raw meat so long as they prepare it according to the government’s sanitation standards. And the government merely "instructs" restaurants to follow these standards, and there are no penalties for noncompliance. Since what goes on in the kitchen is unknown to customers and health authorities, some restaurants have apparently become lax with the standards. Although government regulations alone do not ensure food safety, the food poisoning cases are another sobering reminder that we should never take safety of any kind for granted.
    Traditionally, "fugu" (pufferfish) has topped the list of food one eats at one's own risk. Considered a great delicacy, many gourmets find it irresistible, even though it contains deadly tetrodotoxins that must be carefully removed before contaminating the meat. A haiku by Sojo Hino (1901-1956) goes: "I'm a boy/ I bet my life on fugu." But yakiniku is something people enjoy with family and friends, and nobody's "courage" should be tested by it.
    Back to the sukiyaki scene in Soseki's novel. The protagonist shrugs aside Yama-arashi's caution and replies, "It's probably going to be all right." That's his decision, and I'm fine with that. But it's not fine if a restaurant or the government makes that decision for me. The government must take the "probably" out of the equation at once.

--The Asahi Shimbun, May 7