Three parties linked to a food safety scandal involving Ting Hsin Oil and Fat Industrial Co’s (頂新製油實業) are to be held incommunicado, the Changhua District Court ruled yesterday.
Former Ting Hsin Oil general manager Chang Mei-feng (常梅峰), company quality management division director Tsai Chun-yung (蔡俊勇) and Vietnam-based oil manufacturer Dai Hanh Phuc Co proprietor Yang Chen-yi (楊振益), who is Taiwanese, are being held after a request from the Changhua District Prosecutors’ Office.
“The Changhua District Prosecutors’ Office sought the three men’s detention on charges of obtaining money by false pretense, forgery and violating the Act Governing Food Safety and Sanitation (食品安全衛生管理法),” Changhua District Court spokesman Lee Ching-ching (李進清) told reporters yesterday after the detention hearing.
Photo: Lo Hsin-chen, Taipei Times
Lee said the judge decided to place the suspects in incommunicado detention because there could be other potential accomplices and that the suspects are considered to be at risk of committing crimes if they are released.
Prosecutors said they suspect that Yang knowingly gave fake product certificates created by a local notary to Ting Hsin Oil for his company’s animal feed oil, but that Chang and Tsai continued to purchase oil from Yang, despite knowing that the certificates were fake.
“We do not rule out the possibility that higher levels of management at Ting Hsin Oil also knew about [the illegal dealing]. If necessary, we will summon [former] Ting Hsin Oil chairman Wei Ying-chun (魏應充) for questioning,” prosecutors said.
Photo: CNA
The Chiayi District Prosecutors’ Office later yesterday also requested that Yung Cheng Oil Co owner Tsai Chen-chou (蔡鎮州) be detained, citing concerns that he could destroy evidence showing that his company sold animal feed oil to Hsin Hao Co, which is suspected of supplying questionable oil to Cheng I Food Co.
The court complied with the additional detention request last night, prosecutors said.
Ting Hsin Oil, a subsidiary of the Ting Hsin International Group (頂新集團), produced and sold 54 lard and lard-based edible oil products, and some or all of them might have contained animal feed oil.
Separately yesterday, the FDA released a list of six food products that were found to have been manufactured with the 54 kinds of Ting Hsin Oil lard-based products potentially contaminated with animal feed oil.
Four of the food items were produced by food and seasonings manufacturer Ve Wong Corp (味王) and two were from Kuai Kuai Co (乖乖), a popular snack brand among young children.
“The list is expected to get much longer as the administration and local health authorities’ investigation proceeds,” FDA Interim Director-General Chiang Yu-mei (姜郁美) told a press conference.
Ting Hsin Oil had acquired a total of 3,216 tonnes of lard from Dai Hanh Phuc since 2012 — including 871 tonnes this year — which were falsely labeled as “fit for human use” by a local notary, according to data provided by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
The FDA estimates that Ting Hsin Oil produced a total of 3,646 tonnes of lard-based oil possibly contaminated with animal feed oil last year and this year.
As for the latest developments on the oil scandal involving Cheng I Food Co (正義股份), another subsidiary of Ting Hsin International Group, FDA Northern Center for Regional Administration Director Feng Jun-lan (馮潤蘭) said as of 3pm yesterday, about 272 tonnes of Cheng I’s potentially tainted oil or foodstuffs made from it have been pulled off shelves.
“So far, 222 types of food products from 56 companies have been found to be tainted with Cheng I’s adulterated oil,” Feng said.
Feng said the deadline for all tainted products to be removed from nationwide shelves was yesterday midnight, adding that stores that failed to comply could face a fine ranging from NT$60,000 to NT$50 million (US$2,000 to US$1.6 million).
Among the 56 entities affected are Ve Wong Corp, I-Mei Foods Co (義美食品), Laurel Enterprises Co (桂冠實業), Chinese fast-food chain Dicos, Taipei hotel Four Points by Sheraton, Wei Chuan Food Corp (味全) and 124-year-old bakery chain Jiu Zhen Nan (舊振南).
Taiwan last night blanked world No. 1 Japan 4-0 to win the World Baseball Softball Confederation’s (WBSC) Premier12 for the first time. Taiwanese ace Lin Yu-min (林昱珉) held defending champions Japan to just one hit and no runs in the first four innings, before catcher Lin Chia-cheng (林家正) opened the fifth inning with a solo home run. That was soon followed by a three-run homer from Taiwanese captain Chen Chieh-hsien (陳傑憲) to put Taiwan ahead in the prestigious tournament of the world’s top 12 baseball teams. In addition to a superb performance from 21-year-old Arizona Diamondbacks prospect Lin, three more Taiwanese pitchers
SUPPORT: Arms sales to NATO Plus countries such as Japan, South Korea and Israel only have to be approved by the US Congress if they exceed US$25m The US should amend a law to add Taiwan to the list of “NATO Plus” allies and streamline future arms sales, a US commission said on Tuesday in its annual report to the US Congress. The recommendation was made in the annual report by the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission (USCC), which contained chapters on US-China economic and trade ties, security relations, and Taiwan and Hong Kong. In the chapter on Taiwan, the commission urged the US Congress to “amend the Arms Export Control Act of 1976 to include Taiwan on the list of ‘NATO Plus’ recipients,” referring to
Taiwan yesterday advanced to the gold medal match of the World Baseball Softball Confederation’s (WBSC) Premier12 for the first time in history, despite last night losing 9-6 to Japan. Taiwan advanced after the US defeated Venezuela in the first game on the last day of the Super Round. However, the US had no chance of advancing to the championship game unless it defeated Venezuela by at least nine points. The US won 6-5. As a result, the two teams — who both had one win and two losses in the Super Round — are to face off again in the
Minister of Labor Ho Pei-shan (何佩珊) said she would tender her resignation following criticism of her handling of alleged bullying by Ministry of Labor Workforce Development Agency branch director Hsieh Yi-jung (謝宜容) resulting in the death of an employee. The ministry yesterday gave Hsieh two demerits and said she is subject to review by the Disciplinary Court. The severest possible punishment would be her removal from office and being barred from government jobs indefinitely. Workforce Development Agency Director-General Tsai Meng-liang (蔡孟良) also received a major demerit and was transferred to another position. Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) issued a formal apology