The Control Yuan on Thursday censured three government agencies for poor supervision of the use of plasticizers in the country, which it said resulted in a food scare in May and NT$11.4 billion in losses for the domestic food industry.
The government watchdog censured the Executive Yuan, the Department of Health (DOH) and the Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) and asked the three to investigate officials accused of dereliction of duty.
It also asked the health department to reward Food and Drug Administration inspector Yang Ming-yu (楊明玉), who discovered the banned plasticizer di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate, or DEHP, in bottled beverages and dairy products, thus exposing the biggest food safety crisis in the country.
The three agencies must make improvements in the areas cited in the investigation report, the Control Yuan said, otherwise it would invoke its interrogation rights and impeach the premier — the highest ranking official in the executive branch.
Control Yuan member Cheng Jen-hung (程仁宏) said the investigation found that the health department had ignored public calls for stronger government supervision of food additives and failed to take specific action on the matter.
Although the DOH had been censured several times over its handling of food safety issues, the Cabinet still did not institute proper supervision of the health department, which led to staff and budget shortages, and lax regulations at the DOH, Cheng said at a press conference.
He also displayed a permit for making clouding agents, issued by the DOH in 1978 to Pin Han Perfumery Co, the supplier that was found to have been adding plasticizers to clouding agents.
Since 1978, the department had extended the permit several times based on written reports instead of on-the-spot inspections, Cheng said.
The permit was like an official endorsement that may have led food additive buyers to believe the clouding agents were safe for use, he said.
The plasticizers involved are listed, under EPA regulations, as fourth category toxic substances, and there are about 5,235 registered factories in the country making such substances, he said.
However, there are only three to four employees in a unit with an annual budget of NT$11 million overseeing such substances, which clearly indicates a need for better supervision, he said.
The discovery of plasticizer-tainted products in many processed foods, including sports drinks, juices, jams and bubble tea, forced a widespread recall of products earlier this year. Consumer confidence in Taiwan was heavily affected and the country’s international reputation took a hit.
Taiwan is stepping up plans to create self-sufficient supply chains for combat drones and increase foreign orders from the US to counter China’s numerical superiority, a defense official said on Saturday. Commenting on condition of anonymity, the official said the nation’s armed forces are in agreement with US Admiral Samuel Paparo’s assessment that Taiwan’s military must be prepared to turn the nation’s waters into a “hellscape” for the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA). Paparo, the commander of the US Indo-Pacific Command, reiterated the concept during a Congressional hearing in Washington on Wednesday. He first coined the term in a security conference last
Prosecutors today declined to say who was questioned regarding alleged forgery on petitions to recall Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislators, after Chinese-language media earlier reported that members of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Youth League were brought in for questioning. The Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau confirmed that two people had been questioned, but did not disclose any further information about the ongoing investigation. KMT Youth League members Lee Hsiao-liang (李孝亮) and Liu Szu-yin (劉思吟) — who are leading the effort to recall DPP caucus chief executive Rosalia Wu (吳思瑤) and Legislator Wu Pei-yi (吳沛憶) — both posted on Facebook saying: “I
Sung Chien-liang (宋建樑), who led efforts to recall Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Lee Kun-cheng (李坤城), was released on bail of NT$80,000 today amid outcry over his decision to wear a Nazi armband to questioning the night before. Sung arrived at the New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office for questioning in a recall petition forgery case last night wearing a red armband bearing a swastika, carrying a copy of Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf and giving a Nazi salute. Sung left the building at 1:15am without the armband and covering the book with his coat. Lee said today that this is a serious
The Ministry of Economic Affairs has fined Taobao NT$1.2 million (US$36,912) for advertisements that exceed its approved business scope, requiring the Chinese e-commerce platform to make corrections in the first half of this year or its license may be revoked. Lawmakers have called for stricter enforcement of Chinese e-commerce platforms and measures to prevent China from laundering its goods through Taiwan in response to US President Donald Trump’s heavy tariffs on China. The Legislative Yuan’s Finance Committee met today to discuss policies to prevent China from dumping goods in Taiwan, inviting government agencies to report. Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Kuo Kuo-wen (郭國文) said
RSS