To Gel and Back
February 11, 2008
One of the most difficult things about living in a foreign country is getting to know what you're actually buying in the supermarket. If the products don't feature any images then it's usually anyone's guess what it actually is, especially if the language in which the ingredients are written is a completely alien one.
These risks are multiplied in a globalized world. Your own supermarket, filled with recognizable products and brands, have been infiltrated by foreign goods. Luckily, they are usually arranged on the shelves beside familiar products that give you some indication of whether you should eat the unknown product, rub it on you body or clean your toilet with it.
The absences of such supermarket-shelf context, however, spilled out onto the streets of Germany in last week's Carnival festivities. One incident led the German police to issue a warning to the public about the dangers of eating shower gel.
New danger to be added to list of Carnival risks
It appears that during the procession in Lampertheim, south of Frankfurt, the traditional practice of throwing free treats to the watching crowds included a new risk. Common complaints during carnival often include eye damage from flying sweets and injuries sustained while fighting for candy but poisoning from eating Italian shower gel is a new and unusual one -- even by German Carnival standards.
An unidentified victim, who suffered burning sensations in the mouth and throat after eating the snack, which he thought was a dairy product, was unable to read any of the Italian words on the label of the free gift except the fragrance description: "yoghurt."
Police could not confirm whether anyone else had mistaken the soap for food.
Many gifts thrown to the masses during the late-winter festivities are low-priced Turkish and southern European brands that are not on sale internationally and have no translations on the packaging. Most product safety laws only apply to goods on sale, not hand-outs.