China’s Duqing Company, King Car Industrial Co’s supplier of non-dairy creamer, “is definitely accountable” for the high-level melamine content in King Car’s 3-in-1 drink packages, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday.
The CDC also said that investigations were ongoing as to why the samples that Duqing had sent to Chinese authorities were melamine-free.
CDC Director Steve Kuo (郭旭崧) made the remarks at the International Experts Conference on Control of Melamine Presence in Foods that was hosted by the Department of Health (DOH) yesterday in Taipei. It was attended by domestic experts as well as experts from Belgium, Australia, New Zealand and France.
“The non-dairy creamer that King Car used contained high levels of melamine … Further clarification is needed to see why the creamer Duqing sent to Chinese authorities had undetectable melamine levels,” Kuo said.
King Car on Sept. 21 recalled all 120,000 cases of the product after tests showed that products using powdered non-dairy creamer from China contained the toxic chemical melamine.
The product in question is Duqing’s non-dairy creamer type K33A, which contains ingredients such as corn syrup, vegetable oil, and sodium caseinate, a dairy derivative, Kuo said.
Kuo said that a document was found to stating that prior to April 14 this year, the sodium caseinate used in K33A was from a German company, whereas after that date, the source was from China and derived from yak milk.
Although Duqing denies that the yak milk may be the root of the problem, the issue may warrant investigation, Kuo said.
Kuo said that there were other possible sources for the contamination, and that the cause of the problem is now under investigation.
However, Duqing said that as their non-dairy creamer had an undetectable amount of melamine in an analysis conducted by Chinese authorities, the company would send a team to Taiwan to see if King Car’s tainted products may have had other contaminants.
A DOH official said the company’s representatives have already arrived in Taiwan and are now comparing analysis methods as well as the product batch number for their samples with those from King Car.
“There had been cases before where two analysis institutions would give different results on a test — the sample may not be well mixed, or the batch number of the products tested may be different,” he said.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Twu Shiing-jer (涂醒哲), who crashed the invite-only conference, launched a volley of criticism.
“Would the DOH thoroughly investigate China’s products, or would they allow political manipulation to determine their analysis results? How can Duqing come to investigate in Taiwan?” Twu asked.
“This is demeaning to Taiwan and lowers our national dignity; I expect them to say after the investigation that there were ‘misunderstandings,’” the lawmaker said.
Twu, a former health minister, said he had gone in the conference “as a legislator to pay concern [to the issue.]”
“I’m here to supervise … Have the DOH forgotten that I’m an expert? I’m the former minister and should therefore sit in on the session,” Twu said.
What Taiwanese are most concerned about is the government’s stance on guarding food safety in products imported from China, he said.
Twu also raised concerns that the experts invited to the conference were mostly from the EU, or were milk exporters.
“Many of the victimized countries, such as Singapore, Japan and Hong Kong were not among the expert list. Instead the speakers were from milk powder exporting countries,” he said.
In response, DOH Deputy Minister Sung Yen-jen (宋宴仁) said the department invited experts from Japan and South Korea, however because of the short notice, they were unable to send representatives.
Also See:China officials told tainted milk victims not to sue: lawyers、 EDITORIAL: A shameful tradition of tainted food
Temperatures in northern Taiwan are forecast to reach as high as 30°C today, as an ongoing northeasterly seasonal wind system weakens, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. CWA forecaster Tseng Chao-cheng (曾昭誠) said yesterday that with the seasonal wind system weakening, warmer easterly winds would boost the temperature today. Daytime temperatures in northern Taiwan and Yilan County are expected to range from 28°C to 30°C today, up about 3°C from yesterday, Tseng said. According to the CWA, temperature highs in central and southern Taiwan could stay stable. However, the weather is expected to turn cooler starting tonight as the northeasterly wind system strengthens again
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday expressed “grave concerns” after Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong (黃循財) reiterated the city-state’s opposition to “Taiwanese independence” during a meeting with Chinese Premier Li Qiang (李強). In Singapore on Saturday, Wong and Li discussed cross-strait developments, the Singaporean Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement. “Prime Minister Wong reiterated that Singapore has a clear and consistent ‘one China’ policy and is opposed to Taiwan independence,” it said. MOFA responded that it is an objective fact and a common understanding shared by many that the Republic of China (ROC) is an independent, sovereign nation, with world-leading
COOLING OFF: Temperatures are expected to fall to lows of about 20°C on Sunday and possibly 18°C to 19°C next week, following a wave of northeasterly winds on Friday The Central Weather Administration (CWA) on Sunday forecast more rain and cooler temperatures for northern Taiwan this week, with the mercury dropping to lows of 18°C, as another wave of northeasterly winds sweeps across the country. The current northeasterly winds would continue to affect Taiwan through today, with precipitation peaking today, bringing increased rainfall to windward areas, CWA forecaster Liu Pei-teng (劉沛滕) said. The weather system would weaken slightly tomorrow before another, stronger wave arrives on Friday, lasting into next week, Liu said. From yesterday to today, northern Taiwan can expect cool, wet weather, with lows of 22°C to 23°C in most areas,
DEFENDING FREEDOM: Taiwanese love peace and helping others, and hope to be a positive force in the world, Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim told ‘Weltspiegel’ Taiwan is making every effort to prevent war in the face of China’s hybrid coercion tactics and military threats, Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) said in an interview with German public broadcaster ARD’s program Weltspiegel that aired on Monday. Taiwan is not seeking provocation or intending to disrupt international order, but “must possess the capacity for self-defense,” a news release issued by the Presidential Office yesterday quoted her as saying. Taiwan is closely watching not only the increasing scope and frequency of Chinese military exercises around the nation, but also Beijing’s hybrid and cognitive warfare tactics, including manipulating public opinion, fostering
RSS