A batch of about 2,000 cartons of eggs imported from Brazil had been mislabeled with an incorrect expiration date, but only about 600 to 900 cartons are expected to be recalled, as the others have been sold, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said yesterday.
A post by an agriculture-themed Facebook page on Sunday asked why data from the Ministry of Agriculture showed that the most recent shipment of eggs imported from Brazil was loaded on May 30, but were still on supermarkets shelves with an expiration date of Oct. 5, despite having a shelf life of 120 days.
Tai Nong Egg Products (台農蛋品), the distributor, on Tuesday said that it had printed an incorrect expiration date on the eggs.
Photo courtesy of the Kaohsiung Department of Health via CNA
The correct expiration dates should be from Sept. 25 to 27, it said, adding that it would recall the unsold eggs.
FDA Southern Center Director Wei Jen-ting (魏任廷) yesterday said that about 2,000 cartons had been delivered to PX Mart supermarkets.
PX Mart estimated that it had taken 600 to 900 cartons off its shelves, while the others had been sold, Wei said.
Tai Nong Egg Products contravened the Act Governing Food Safety and Sanitation (食品安全衛生管理法) by printing incorrect expiration dates, so it faces a fine of NT$40,000 to NT$4 million (US$1,251 and US$125,125), he said.
However, it can continue to sell the eggs if it fixes the expiration dates before they expire, he said.
FDA Deputy Director Lin Chin-fu (林金富) said that as of yesterday, all of the eggs with incorrect expiration dates had been removed from shelves.
People can return mislabeled eggs at PX Marts and get a refund, Lin said.
People who have eaten the eggs do not have to be worried, as they have not yet expired, he added.
Reporters asked Lin about comments by the Ministry of Agriculture that the eggs imported from Brazil had been coated with wax to extend their shelf life.
Information the importer provided did not mention whether they were wax-coated, Lin said.
The eggs were washed in Brazil and washed again in Taiwan, which made it clear that they were not coated with wax, he said.
Decisions about coating the eggs is up to distributors, he said, adding that there is no difference between coated and uncoated for eggs that are produced domestically.
In other news, FDA Deputy Director Cheng Hwei-fang (陳惠芳) said that the FDA has revised its controlled drugs classifications, with phenobarbital and chlordiazepoxide to be listed as Category 4 controlled drugs from Dec. 1.
To prevent improper use of the sedatives after the new policy takes effect, facilities that have the compounds would need to apply for a controlled drugs license, keep a daily log of use and periodically report usage to the FDA, Cheng said.
Additional reporting by CNA
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
A wild live dugong was found in Taiwan for the first time in 88 years, after it was accidentally caught by a fisher’s net on Tuesday in Yilan County’s Fenniaolin (粉鳥林). This is the first sighting of the species in Taiwan since 1937, having already been considered “extinct” in the country and considered as “vulnerable” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. A fisher surnamed Chen (陳) went to Fenniaolin to collect the fish in his netting, but instead caught a 3m long, 500kg dugong. The fisher released the animal back into the wild, not realizing it was an endangered species at
The High Prosecutors’ Office yesterday withdrew an appeal against the acquittal of a former bank manager 22 years after his death, marking Taiwan’s first instance of prosecutors rendering posthumous justice to a wrongfully convicted defendant. Chu Ching-en (諸慶恩) — formerly a manager at the Taipei branch of BNP Paribas — was in 1999 accused by Weng Mao-chung (翁茂鍾), then-president of Chia Her Industrial Co, of forging a request for a fixed deposit of US$10 million by I-Hwa Industrial Co, a subsidiary of Chia Her, which was used as collateral. Chu was ruled not guilty in the first trial, but was found guilty
DEADLOCK: As the commission is unable to forum a quorum to review license renewal applications, the channel operators are not at fault and can air past their license date The National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday said that the Public Television Service (PTS) and 36 other television and radio broadcasters could continue airing, despite the commission’s inability to meet a quorum to review their license renewal applications. The licenses of PTS and the other channels are set to expire between this month and June. The National Communications Commission Organization Act (國家通訊傳播委員會組織法) stipulates that the commission must meet the mandated quorum of four to hold a valid meeting. The seven-member commission currently has only three commissioners. “We have informed the channel operators of the progress we have made in reviewing their license renewal applications, and