The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) yesterday suspended chili pepper powder imports from China from 21 importers and manufacturers for three months after their products were found to contain Sudan III, a coloring agent banned in food in Taiwan.
A policy to test every shipment of chili powder imports from China, in effect since Dec. 11 last year, is to continue until June 10, FDA officials told a news conference, adding that more than 1.06 tonnes of products were recalled as of Monday.
The family of substances known as “Sudan reds” are categorized as Group II carcinogens by the WHO and typically used as an industrial dye for oils, wax and polymers, said Yen Tsung-hai (顏宗海), a toxicology expert at Linkou Chang Gung Memorial Hospital.
Photo courtesy of Hsinchu City Public Health Bureau
Sudan reds have been linked to increased cancer rates in lab animals and human consumption of the substance can lead to the formation of amines, a probable carcinogen for humans, Yen said.
PX Mart Co (全聯實業) has recalled all 11,824 chili powder bottles of the affected batch bearing an expiration date of Dec. 12 next year, the FDA said.
An investigation found that the contaminated material came from a shipment of Chinese chili powder imported by Bao Hsin Enterprises Co Ltd (保欣企業有限公司), FDA Deputy Director-General Lin Chin-fu (林金富) said.
The New Taipei City Department of Health on Feb. 9 found four parts per billion of Sudan III in samples taken from that shipment, resulting in the recall of food products by five additional manufacturers, including Yuzhong Food’s (裕榮食品股份有限公司) popular shrimp-flavored snacks, Lin said.
Ho Ho Yuan International Trade Co (禾禾園國際貿易有限公司), Shen Yan Co (申元有限公司), Yun Fang Spice Processing Factory (永芳香料加工所), Sun Sheng Foods Co (順盛食品原料有限公司) and Mares International Trading Co (瑪爾氏國際貿易) were among the companies that issued recalls, in addition to a company that appeared to have used an unaffected batch of chili powder, Lin said.
Food safety officials are confident that all affected manufacturers and distributors have been identified and no tainted products are on store shelves, he said.
The Yunlin County Public Health Bureau has filed a criminal complaint with the Yunlin District Prosecutors’ Office, the FDA said.
The agency increased the test coverage of chili powder from China to all shipments after observing a surge in consignments that failed food safety standards, Lin said.
Eight months before the FDA imposed the new standards, 172 shipments of Chinese chili powder were imported into Taiwan, of which 98 were inspected and 24 failed tests, a failure rate of about 25 percent, he said.
The tainted powder that ended up in the supply chain was imported on Oct. 23 last year before the standards were enhanced, he said.
The use of Sudan reds in food is punishable by up to seven years in prison commutable to an NT$80 million (US$2.54 million) fine, FDA Director-General Wu Shou-mei (吳秀梅) said.
Importing a food product without valid documentation, including its point of origin, is punishable by a NT$200 million fine and the possible suspension of the affected product line or company, Wu said.
Tropical Storm Usagi strengthened to a typhoon yesterday morning and remains on track to brush past southeastern Taiwan from tomorrow to Sunday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. As of 2pm yesterday, the storm was approximately 950km east-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan proper’s southernmost point, the CWA said. It is expected to enter the Bashi Channel and then turn north, moving into waters southeast of Taiwan, it said. The agency said it could issue a sea warning in the early hours of today and a land warning in the afternoon. As of 2pm yesterday, the storm was moving at
DISCONTENT: The CCP finds positive content about the lives of the Chinese living in Taiwan threatening, as such video could upset people in China, an expert said Chinese spouses of Taiwanese who make videos about their lives in Taiwan have been facing online threats from people in China, a source said yesterday. Some young Chinese spouses of Taiwanese make videos about their lives in Taiwan, often speaking favorably about their living conditions in the nation compared with those in China, the source said. However, the videos have caught the attention of Chinese officials, causing the spouses to come under attack by Beijing’s cyberarmy, they said. “People have been messing with the YouTube channels of these Chinese spouses and have been harassing their family members back in China,”
UPDATED FORECAST: The warning covered areas of Pingtung County and Hengchun Peninsula, while a sea warning covering the southern Taiwan Strait was amended The Central Weather Administration (CWA) at 5:30pm yesterday issued a land warning for Typhoon Usagi as the storm approached Taiwan from the south after passing over the Philippines. As of 5pm, Usagi was 420km south-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan proper’s southernmost tip, with an average radius of 150km, the CWA said. The land warning covered areas of Pingtung County and the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春), and came with an amended sea warning, updating a warning issued yesterday morning to cover the southern part of the Taiwan Strait. No local governments had announced any class or office closures as of press time last night. The typhoon
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said there are four weather systems in the western Pacific, with one likely to strengthen into a tropical storm and pose a threat to Taiwan. The nascent tropical storm would be named Usagi and would be the fourth storm in the western Pacific at the moment, along with Typhoon Yinxing and tropical storms Toraji and Manyi, the CWA said. It would be the first time that four tropical cyclones exist simultaneously in November, it added. Records from the meteorology agency showed that three tropical cyclones existed concurrently in January in 1968, 1991 and 1992.
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