The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Wednesday said it had detected slight traces of a banned additive in one sample of frozen pork sold by Taiwan Sugar Corp (Taisugar) after retesting.
The FDA and Taichung Health Bureau tested pork samples again for cimbuterol, a leanness-enhancing additive, following doubts about the bureau’s original process.
After the bureau’s initial finding released on Friday last week, the FDA and Council of Agriculture found no issues at the pig farm or packing plant, and other agencies were unable to replicate the result.
Photo courtesy of the Taichung Health Bureau
Three separate tests conducted by the FDA earlier this week found amounts near the limit of 0.001 parts per million (ppm) in one sample, but not others from the same batch, FDA Director Wu Shou-mei (吳秀梅) told a news conference on Wednesday.
Although the additive was found, it was in very small amounts, Wu said, adding that a meeting would be held to discuss potential causes.
The agency is still testing 29 other samples, but so far, cimbuterol has only been found in the one sample, Wu said.
Meanwhile, the Taichung bureau’s new test confirmed its earlier result of 0.002ppm, bureau Director Tseng Tzu-chan (曾梓展) told reporters.
Of the 22 tests conducted by the bureau, 21 found trace amounts of cimbuterol, he said.
Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) is unlikely to attempt an invasion of Taiwan during US president-elect Donald Trump’s time in office, Taiwanese and foreign academics said on Friday. Trump is set to begin his second term early next year. Xi’s ambition to establish China as a “true world power” has intensified over the years, but he would not initiate an invasion of Taiwan “in the near future,” as his top priority is to maintain the regime and his power, not unification, Tokyo Woman’s Christian University distinguished visiting professor and contemporary Chinese politics expert Akio Takahara said. Takahara made the comment at a
Upon its completion next year, the new Tamkang Bridge (淡江大橋) in New Taipei City is to be an important landmark in Taiwan, alongside Taipei 101, Minister of Transportation and Communications Chen Shi-kai (陳世凱) said today. The bridge is scheduled to be completed in December next year and open to the public in the first half of 2026, connecting New Taipei City’s Tamsui (淡水) and Bali (八里) districts. It is an asymmetric single-tower suspension bridge, nearly 70 stories tall, designed by world-famous architect Zaha Hadid. The bridge aims to alleviate traffic in Tamsui and on the Guandu Bridge (關渡大橋), in addition to increasing the
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PROBLEMATIC: Popular hotpot restaurant chains were among the list of restaurants that failed the inspection and have been ordered to remove bad ingredients The Taipei Department of Health’s latest inspection of hotpot ingredients in hotpot restaurants resulted in a 16.7 percent failure rate. Eight vegetables had excessive pesticide residue and two other items had aflatoxin and excessive preservatives. As the weather is getting colder, more people eat at hotpot restaurants so a random inspection of ingredients was conducted in October to ensure food safety, the department said. Food and Drug Division Director Lin Kuan-chen (林冠蓁) said 60 different ingredients were tested: 15 high-risk vegetables, 15 processed food items, 10 soy-based food items, five meat items, five lamb items, five seafood items and five peanut powder
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