The Kaohsiung Department of Health yesterday said it fined Costco NT$4.5 million (US$146,265) over contaminated frozen strawberries, while the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said that although the US company had filed an improvement plan, an import suspension on frozen berries could remain.
Three types of frozen berry products imported and sold by Costco have tested positive for the hepatitis A virus since April.
The Kaohsiung health department previously fined Costco NT$300,000 for not providing the sales list of a contaminated batch of Kirkland Signature Three Berry Blend imported from Chile, in contravention of the Communicable Disease Control Act (傳染病防治法). It later fined the company NT$7.5 million over the same batch, for contravening the Act Governing Food Safety and Sanitation (食品安全衛生管理法).
Photo: CNA
The health department said that it on Wednesday last week fined Costco NT$4.5 million for a batch of Kirkland Signature Grade A Fancy Strawberries imported from Mexico, which also tested positive for the hepatitis A virus.
FDA Southern Center Director Wei Jen-ting (魏任廷) said the health department imposed the most recent fine after assessing certain factors such as how many products have been imported and sold.
As the hepatitis A virus has been detected on Costco frozen mixed berries, frozen blueberries and frozen strawberries, the FDA had suspended the importation of the products between May 3 and Friday, and it also on May 1 launched an expanded random inspection program to test imported frozen berry products.
As of Tuesday, 77 items had been inspected, with one testing positive and 67 testing negative, while nine were still being tested, FDA Deputy Director Lin Chin-fu (林金富) said.
The FDA ordered Costco to submit an improvement report, explaining the source of contamination and its improvement plan, by midnight last night, he said.
Although Costco submitted the report yesterday, the FDA said that if the company does not clarify and solve the problem, the agency might not approve its inspection applications for imported frozen berries, meaning the import suspension would continue.
Beijing could eventually see a full amphibious invasion of Taiwan as the only "prudent" way to bring about unification, the US Department of Defense said in a newly released annual report to Congress. The Pentagon's "Annual Report to Congress: Military and Security Developments Involving the People's Republic of China 2025," was in many ways similar to last year’s report but reorganized the analysis of the options China has to take over Taiwan. Generally, according to the report, Chinese leaders view the People's Liberation Army's (PLA) capabilities for a Taiwan campaign as improving, but they remain uncertain about its readiness to successfully seize
HORROR STORIES: One victim recounted not realizing they had been stabbed and seeing people bleeding, while another recalled breaking down in tears after fleeing A man on Friday died after he tried to fight the knife-wielding suspect who went on a stabbing spree near two of Taipei’s busiest metro stations, Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) said. The 57-year-old man, identified by his family name, Yu (余), encountered the suspect at Exit M7 of Taipei Main Station and immediately tried to stop him, but was fatally wounded and later died, Chiang said, calling the incident “heartbreaking.” Yu’s family would receive at least NT$5 million (US$158,584) in compensation through the Taipei Rapid Transit Corp’s (TRTC) insurance coverage, he said after convening an emergency security response meeting yesterday morning. National
Taiwan has overtaken South Korea this year in per capita income for the first time in 23 years, IMF data showed. Per capita income is a nation’s GDP divided by the total population, used to compare average wealth levels across countries. Taiwan also beat Japan this year on per capita income, after surpassing it for the first time last year, US magazine Newsweek reported yesterday. Across Asia, Taiwan ranked fourth for per capita income at US$37,827 this year due to sustained economic growth, the report said. In the top three spots were Singapore, Macau and Hong Kong, it said. South
PLANNED: The suspect visited the crime scene before the killings, seeking information on how to access the roof, and had extensively researched a 2014 stabbing incident The suspect in a stabbing attack that killed three people and injured 11 in Taipei on Friday had planned the assault and set fires at other locations earlier in the day, law enforcement officials said yesterday. National Police Agency (NPA) Director-General Chang Jung-hsin (張榮興) said the suspect, a 27-year-old man named Chang Wen (張文), began the attacks at 3:40pm, first setting off smoke bombs on a road, damaging cars and motorbikes. Earlier, Chang Wen set fire to a rental room where he was staying on Gongyuan Road in Zhongzheng District (中正), Chang Jung-hsin said. The suspect later threw smoke grenades near two exits
RSS