‘Fake’ Plastic-Made Rice Is Allegedly Plaguing Southeast Asia

Filipino rice lovers might want to be on guard, as there have been reports of alleged ‘fake rice’ being bought and sold throughout the Philippines.

Surprisingly, this is not be the first time that a fake rice scandal has surfaced in Asia. Around six years ago, there were reports of ‘fake rice’ being made with plastic, exported from China, and distributed throughout Asia.

Citizens have complained to government officials that the rice they have been consuming has tasted “off,”  and did not have the same consistency after being properly cooked, even causing illnesses.

There have been several viral demonstration videos of people exposing the rice’s viability, like the one below:

The majority of the video above is reported in Tagalog (Philippine native language), as the user cooks a sample of the alleged fake rice, cools it, and molds it into a ball. He then tosses it onto the floor, staying solid, not falling apart like normal rice would, and making a distinct thud; which would seemingly validate citizens claims.

The country’s National Food Administration (NFA) and local authorities continue to investigate these claims, but no official word yet on the complete validity of these claims.

Luckily, there are currently no reports of the purported ‘fake rice’ being imported into the United States.