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Buyers of Mitsuke dumplings urged to check dates: DOH

The Department of Health (DOH) urged the public to double-check the manufacturing date on Chinese-made dumplings sold by Japan's Mitsuke Co and bought at Sogo Department Stores.

Frozen dumplings made in June by China's Tianyang Food Processing and bought in Japan have been found to be contaminated with the pesticide methamidophos and blamed for a string of illnesses in western and central Japan since December.

The DOH issued a statement on Jan. 31 saying that Chinese-made dumplings were not imported into Taiwan because the government does not allow the sale of meat or meat byproducts from China.

However, it has since learned that Mitsuke's China-made dumplings were sold at SOGO stores in Taipei last month.

Bureau of Food and Drug Analysis Deputy Director Hsieh Ting-hung (謝定宏) said the fried dumplings sold in Taiwan were made last June, while the methamidophos-contaminated dumplings in Japan came from two batches, one made on Oct. 1 and the other on Oct. 20.

SOGO spokesperson Tsao Chun-hui (曹春輝) told TVBS yesterday that the department store had ordered 120 packs of Mitsuke's fried dumplings and that 86 packs had been sold.

SOGO was ordered to take the dumplings off its shelves, the DOH said in a statement issued late on Tuesday, adding that an official application to import the fried dumplings had not been filed in violation of the law.

By law, any imported food must be inspected. Only foodstuffs imported for personal use, as samples, or for testing do not need to be inspected as long as the amount is less than 10kg and the items are worth less than US$2,000.

In Japan, meanwhile, tests show a second type of pesticide in dumplings made by Tianyang, Japanese Consumer's Cooperative Union said yesterday.

The supermarket chain, known as Co-op, said tests detected the chemical dichlorvos in both the filling and dough of frozen dumplings made in June by Tianyang.

In the dichlorvos contamination, the dumplings were recalled after a worker at one of the Co-op's outlets complained of oil-like odor in November, the Co-op said in a statement on Tuesday.

The company conducted tests this week and found traces of dichlorvos. Tests late last year on the dumplings' packaging had found traces of other chemicals, but no pesticide tests were done.

A total 10 parts per million of dichlorvos was detected in the dumplings -- 110 ppm in the dough and 0.42 ppm in the filling, the Co-op said.

The Japanese residue standard for wheat is 1 ppm and 0.1 ppm for cabbage.

There have been no reports of health problems stemming from dumplings made on the same day -- June 3 -- but the concentration level of the insecticide is above the level that is acceptable for a person weighing 50kg if two dumplings are consumed, the Asahi Shimbun reported.

In related news, Japan Tobacco said yesterday that it has scrapped a planned merger of its frozen food operations with noodlemaker Nissin after its affiliate -- JT Foods Co -- recalled dumplings and foods it imported from Tianyang.
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