More than half of the randomly inspected soy sauce products failed a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) labeling inspection and five failed safety inspections because they contained too much preservative, officials said yesterday.
The FDA said that in September and October it randomly collected samples of 78 soy sauce products produced by 40 companies to inspect their labels and additives, as well as the manufacturers’ factory hygiene and food facilities registration.
The inspection found 57 products had labeling problems, and five had more than the legal amount of preservatives, including one — Aged Soy Sauce Paste (陳年壺底油膏) by Hsin Ren Cheng Soy Sauce Factory (新仁成醬油廠) in Changhua County — which contained twice the legal limit of parabens, which are used to limit bacteria growth.
“The food additives detected in the items are legal, but they used too much, breaching Article 18 of the Act Governing Food Safety and Sanitation (食品安全衛生管理法), and may face a fine between NT$30,000 and NT$3 million (US$940 and US$940,038),” FDA Southern Center interim director Liu Fang-ming (劉芳銘) said.
“Excess preservatives could stimulate the gastrointestinal tract or cause nausea and vomiting,” he said.
Most of five sauces with excess preservatives were purchased by breakfast shops or small restaurants, and the local health departments have asked the companies to recall the products, he said.
The FDA said local health departments have fined the companies manufacturing the five items a total of NT$210,000.
Liu said 75 percent of the manufacturers failed hygiene inspections, but later passed follow-up inspections, he said.
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