Resonac controversies
Controversies tied to this brand in public sources. A listing is not a finding of fault.
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1989
L-tryptophan and eosinophilia-myalgia syndrome
An outbreak of eosinophilia-myalgia syndrome was linked by multiple epidemiological studies to L-tryptophan supplied by Showa Denko. Investigations examined changes in fermentation and purification processes and identified trace impurities as a possible cause. The role of genetically engineered production bacteria was widely debated, but the reference notes that the initial causal interpretation was contested. L-tryptophan manufactured by Showa Denko was linked by epidemiological investigations to an outbreak of eosinophilia-myalgia syndrome. Investigators examined changes to fermentation and purification processes and identified trace contaminants as a possible explanation. Later research also questioned some aspects of the original causal interpretation and considered alternative biological mechanisms.
1968
Niigata Minamata disease
Showa Denko was associated with the second major Minamata-disease outbreak in Japan after organomercury pollution entered the Agano River in Niigata Prefecture. The contamination caused severe mercury poisoning among affected communities and remains one of the company’s most serious environmental controversies. Showa Denko was associated with organomercury pollution in the Agano River basin in Niigata Prefecture. The contamination caused severe mercury poisoning among affected communities and became known as Niigata Minamata disease.