Tests on 30 types of melamine resin food containers showed that five contained formaldehyde and one contained amounts of melamine that exceeded safe levels, the Consumer Protection Committee said yesterday, adding that a request had been made to take the products out of circulation.
Melamine resin containers are widely used for storing food and are especially popular in snack bars because they are cheap, heat resistant and shockproof. However, poorly made containers may pose health risks, the committee said.
Consumer ombudsman Wang Teh-ming (王德明) said the committee collected samples of 30 types of melamine food containers and eating utensils from five cities and counties across the nation last month, and commissioned the Department of Health to conduct dissolution tests on the samples and the Ministry of Economic Affairs to inspect the products’ labels.
Photo: Yang Chiu-ying, Taipei Times
The test results showed that five containers released formaldehyde and one released excessive amounts of melamine after holding 95°C water for 30 minutes, in violation of the Sanitation Standards for Utensils, Containers and Packages (食品器具容器包裝衛生標準).
Cheng Wei-chih (鄭維智), an official at the department’s Food and Drug Administration, said ingesting too much formaldehyde may harm the stomach or other organs, while melamine ingestion could lead to abnormal concretion or tissue proliferation in the body.
Poor-quality or cracked containers have a high possibility of secreting formaldehyde, melamine, or other toxic heavy metal substances into food, he said, adding that cracked, worn-out and chapped containers should be immediately discarded.
Although melamine resin food containers can resist temperatures of about 120°C, it is best not to use them for boiling-hot food, Wang said, adding that the containers should not be put in microwave ovens, ultra-violet sterilizers, or used in high temperatures. He also said that they should be washed with neutral detergent and not be scrubbed with rough sponges.
Moreover, a product label inspection showed that 28 of the 30 samples did not provide all of the required product information, such as material composition, temperature resistance, manufacturer and caution notices.
The six containers that failed the test as well as the majority of sampled items were made in China.
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
The High Prosecutors’ Office yesterday withdrew an appeal against the acquittal of a former bank manager 22 years after his death, marking Taiwan’s first instance of prosecutors rendering posthumous justice to a wrongfully convicted defendant. Chu Ching-en (諸慶恩) — formerly a manager at the Taipei branch of BNP Paribas — was in 1999 accused by Weng Mao-chung (翁茂鍾), then-president of Chia Her Industrial Co, of forging a request for a fixed deposit of US$10 million by I-Hwa Industrial Co, a subsidiary of Chia Her, which was used as collateral. Chu was ruled not guilty in the first trial, but was found guilty
A wild live dugong was found in Taiwan for the first time in 88 years, after it was accidentally caught by a fisher’s net on Tuesday in Yilan County’s Fenniaolin (粉鳥林). This is the first sighting of the species in Taiwan since 1937, having already been considered “extinct” in the country and considered as “vulnerable” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. A fisher surnamed Chen (陳) went to Fenniaolin to collect the fish in his netting, but instead caught a 3m long, 500kg dugong. The fisher released the animal back into the wild, not realizing it was an endangered species at
DEADLOCK: As the commission is unable to forum a quorum to review license renewal applications, the channel operators are not at fault and can air past their license date The National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday said that the Public Television Service (PTS) and 36 other television and radio broadcasters could continue airing, despite the commission’s inability to meet a quorum to review their license renewal applications. The licenses of PTS and the other channels are set to expire between this month and June. The National Communications Commission Organization Act (國家通訊傳播委員會組織法) stipulates that the commission must meet the mandated quorum of four to hold a valid meeting. The seven-member commission currently has only three commissioners. “We have informed the channel operators of the progress we have made in reviewing their license renewal applications, and
RSS