Video clips showing people consuming the deep-fried starch toothpicks with seasoning such as powdered cheese have racked up thousands of likes and shares on TikTok and Instagram.
A health warning from South Korea’s food ministry has urged people not to eat fried toothpicks made of starch in a shape resembling curly fries, after the practice went viral in social media posts.
Video clips showing people consuming the deep-fried starch toothpicks with seasoning such as powdered cheese have racked up thousands of likes and shares on TikTok and Instagram.
“Their safety as food has not been verified,” the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety said in a posting on Wednesday on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter. “Please do not eat (them).”
If it isn’t safe as food, then I don’t think it should be considered safe to go into your mouth.
Not sure this holds up. Most people use plastic toothbrushes and nylon floss, but wouldn’t consider either of them especially safe as food.
You don’t eat your toothbrush or floss right? I think that’s what the above poster was getting at.
You shouldn’t eat a toothpick, either.
I mean, I understand that they’re not being made to be eaten, but they’re made from sweet potato starch or cornstarch.
Sure, they’re not being prepped for consumption, so there might be dangerous chemical preservatives or something not listed, but the reason people are eating them is because they’re made of food.