The Department of Health yesterday said it did not plan to include bread and other baked goods in its inspection regime for illegal plasticizers, as the contamination had mostly been discovered in baked goods containing jam.
Since news broke that potentially harmful chemicals have been found in food additives, the department has required manufacturers of five categories of foods and beverages — sports drinks; juice; tea drinks; fruit jams and syrups; as well as tablets and powders — to provide certificates showing their products are free of di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate, or DEHP, and other plasticizer chemicals.
Last week, Yu Shen Chemical Co (昱伸香料有限公司), which is under investigation for allegedly using DEHP in food additives, said pastry shops were among its customers.
Prosecutors have said that Yu Shen purchased about 5 tonnes of DEHP every month to make flavor and food coloring agents and sold the products to domestic producers of jam and baked goods, as well as pastry shops.
This revelation led to the investigation of seven of the nation’s most popular jam, bread and pastry businesses, which were alleged to have bought plasticizer-tainted food additives.
As the number of tainted products continues to spread to other food categories that may contain artificial flavoring, questions have been raised as to whether inspections should be extended to baked goods and pastries.
Food and Drug Administration Director-General Kang Jaw-jou (康照洲) said that more than 30,000 products fell under the five categories of foods and beverages that need to undergo laboratory testing.
As such, there was not enough time or resources to conduct comprehensive inspections of each bakery or pastry shop, Kang said.
Kang said the important thing for health officials to focus on was to track down the source of tainted raw materials and the downstream companies which had bought these products.
The department said consumers should not be too concerned about buying bread or other baked goods that do not contain jam.
Experts have pointed to the possible presence of plasticizer chemicals in jam and artificially made juice concentrates because the chemicals could be used as fixative agents, which can help products smell fresh longer.
Meanwhile, laboratory tests showed that samples of a 12.7cm tiramisu sold by RT-Mart contained 3.6 parts per million of di--isononyl phthalate, or DINP, which has led to questions as to whether its suppliers provided RT-Mart with contaminated material or whether the plasticizer chemicals came from the product packaging.
RT-Mart said it did not source its materials from the list of suppliers that may have used or manufactured contaminated food additives.
Health officials said it was unclear at what point in the production and packaging process the tiramisu was contaminated with DINP.
ROLLER-COASTER RIDE: More than five earthquakes ranging from magnitude 4.4 to 5.5 on the Richter scale shook eastern Taiwan in rapid succession yesterday afternoon Back-to-back weather fronts are forecast to hit Taiwan this week, resulting in rain across the nation in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration said yesterday, as it also warned residents in mountainous regions to be wary of landslides and rockfalls. As the first front approached, sporadic rainfall began in central and northern parts of Taiwan yesterday, the agency said, adding that rain is forecast to intensify in those regions today, while brief showers would also affect other parts of the nation. A second weather system is forecast to arrive on Thursday, bringing additional rain to the whole nation until Sunday, it
LANDSLIDES POSSIBLE: The agency advised the public to avoid visiting mountainous regions due to more expected aftershocks and rainfall from a series of weather fronts A series of earthquakes over the past few days were likely aftershocks of the April 3 earthquake in Hualien County, with further aftershocks to be expected for up to a year, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Based on the nation’s experience after the quake on Sept. 21, 1999, more aftershocks are possible over the next six months to a year, the agency said. A total of 103 earthquakes of magnitude 4 on the local magnitude scale or higher hit Hualien County from 5:08pm on Monday to 10:27am yesterday, with 27 of them exceeding magnitude 5. They included two, of magnitude
CONDITIONAL: The PRC imposes secret requirements that the funding it provides cannot be spent in states with diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Emma Reilly said China has been bribing UN officials to obtain “special benefits” and to block funding from countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a former UN employee told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. At a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee hearing into “international relations within the multilateral system,” former Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) employee Emma Reilly said in a written statement that “Beijing paid bribes to the two successive Presidents of the [UN] General Assembly” during the two-year negotiation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Another way China exercises influence within the UN Secretariat is
Taiwan’s first drag queen to compete on the internationally acclaimed RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind (妮妃雅), was on Friday crowned the “Next Drag Superstar.” Dressed in a sparkling banana dress, Nymphia Wind swept onto the stage for the final, and stole the show. “Taiwan this is for you,” she said right after show host RuPaul announced her as the winner. “To those who feel like they don’t belong, just remember to live fearlessly and to live their truth,” she said on stage. One of the frontrunners for the past 15 episodes, the 28-year-old breezed through to the final after weeks of showcasing her unique