A random inspection of dried, pickled or preserved vegetable and fruit products sold online resulted in 13 of 24 items failing inspection, a failure rate of 54 percent, the Taipei Department of Health said yesterday.
More consumers have been buying food products through online shopping platforms over the past few years, Food and Drug Division Director Lin Kuan-chen (林冠蓁) said.
“The 24 items passed the food safety inspection, but 13 of them were found with labeling problems,” Lin said.
Photo: Chien Jung-feng, Taipei Times
The 24 items included six types of dried fruit, five licorice menthol (八仙果), four pickled vegetable, four dried fruit and three dried vegetable products, and two types of candied fruit, she said.
Tested for preservatives, sweeteners, bleaching agents, antiseptics and coloring agents, the items all met the Standards for Specification, Scope, Application and Limitation of Food Additives (食品添加物使用範圍及限量暨規格標準), she said.
However, 13 items had labeling issues, including 11 that were found to contain some food additives that were not listed on the label and three items that had incomplete information such as the company name, telephone, address, net weight, quantity or nutrition facts, Lin said.
For example, a candied hibiscus flower product was found to contain the preservative sorbic acid, red coloring agent Ponceau 4R, and sweeteners neotame and stevia, but the four additives and the manufacturing company’s name were not printed on the label, she said.
Of the 13 mislabeled items, six were purchased from online marketplace Shopee, three from PChome Online, three from Momo.com and one from freshdays-shop.com, the department said.
The department has informed the online shopping platforms and local health departments where the manufacturing companies are located, Lin said.
According to the Food Safety and Sanitation Act (食品安全衛生管理法), companies that produced food products with false labeling may face a fine between NT$40,000 and NT$4 million (US$1,231 and US$123,134), she added.
As some people might have allergic reactions to certain chemicals, they should check the labels to avoid them, Linkou Chang Gung Memorial Hospital Clinical Poison Center director Yen Tzung-hai (顏宗海) said.
Food companies should clearly list all the additives on product labels, he said.
The department also encourages people to buy food products that are close to their original color and avoid those that are too white or too bright, Lin said.
People should also avoid items with a pungent or abnormal smell, and check if the packaging is intact and if the required information is printed on the label, Lin said.
People should also eat more fresh fruits and vegetables, drink plenty of water and avoid consuming too much processed food, she said.
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