Okinawa port turns blood red after beer factory leak in Japan

A food colouring leak in a port in Japan left a flowing river blood red in colour, pictures of which have surfaced on the internet.

It has raised an alarming situation in the Nago city of Japan’s Okinawa after seeing the river turning into deep crimson colour.

According to a BBC report, the leak reportedly started in one of the cooling systems of the brewery. It was stopped at around 9.30 am local time, according to Japanese media reports.

The residents described the scarlet waters as “gruesome” on social media, while others said it looked “venomous”, BBC said, adding that the view alarmed people prompting an apology from a beer factory.

Orion Breweries, a brewery, later apologised for “causing enormous trouble and worry” in a statement. They said a food colouring dye that had leaked into a river had caused the port to turn colour, adding that it posed no health risks.

Officials at the brewery said the chemical propylene glycol had resulted in the colour change. The chemical is used as a food additive by factories in the cooling process.

Commonly used in drug and cosmetic industries, it is “generally recognised as safe”, the US Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry has said.

The brewery company’s president Hajime Murano said the firm was investigating how the leak had occurred. The official added that they would take steps in future to prevent such a leakage from occuring again.

(Input from Agencies)

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