A food company on Tuesday said it is recalling a line of baby rice crackers after local health officials said it illegally used nitrogen in food packaging.
New Taipei City-based Chanyue International Co (展裕國際) said in a statement on its Web site that it on Monday started a nationwide recall of “LeVic Babies Rice Cookie,” after its use of nitrogen in packaging raised health concerns.
Customers who have bought the crackers can return them for a refund or a replacement, it said, adding that it would send samples from the recalled items to a third-party certification body for tests.
Acting on a tip-off, officials from the New Taipei City Department of Health and the Ministry of Justice’s Investigation Bureau visited the company on Friday last week for an inspection, the department said.
Officials found nitrogen cylinders labeled “banned for use with food” being used to package rice crackers, it said.
The department instructed the firm to improve its flawed and unsanitary production processes, which contravene the Act Governing Food Safety and Sanitation (食品安全衛生管理法), it said, adding that it would carry out another inspection in two weeks.
If the company fails to make improvements, it could face a fine ranging from NT$60,000 to NT$200 million (US$2,123 to US$7.08 million), according to the act.
Only nitrogen that is at least 99 percent pure can be used for food packaging, department official Yang Shu-chin (楊舒秦) said, citing international regulations.
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