After one person died and eight became ill from eating pufferfish in Nantou County, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) urged people not to eat seafood from unknown sources, saying that restaurants should avoid serving the poisonous fish.
The Nantou County Police Bureau on Sunday reported that the owner of a small restaurant in Nantou’s Renai Township (仁愛) surnamed Hung (洪) invited eight friends to eat at his restaurant on Saturday evening and served them pufferfish.
The next morning, one of his friends felt numb around his mouth, hands and feet, and went to check on Hung at his home, only to find him lying on the floor not breathing and with no pulse, the bureau said.
Photo provided by police via CNA
The friend called the police and Hung was declared dead, it said, adding that the eight friends were rushed to hospital.
Tetrodotoxin is an extremely potent neurotoxin found in pufferfish — mainly in their liver, ovaries, intestine and skin, the FDA said, adding that it is heat stable, so cooking does not destroy it.
Poisoning can occur as soon as 10 to 45 minutes after ingestion, and symptoms include numbness around the mouth, fingers and toes, as well as a headache, dizziness and vomiting, the FDA said.
In serious cases, it can cause respiratory failure and death, it said.
There are many species of pufferfish, and they are not easy to tell apart, so the best way to avoid pufferfish poisoning is to not catch them and to not eat seafood from an unknown source, the FDA said.
Restaurants should avoid serving pufferfish, and people who suspect they have food poisoning after eating seafood should seek medical attention immediately and, if possible, preserve a specimen of the food they ate for a more accurate diagnosis, it said.
FDA Deputy Director Lin Chin-fu (林金富) yesterday said that the Nantou County Public Health Bureau collected a specimen of the pufferfish that the people ate on Saturday.
It would be examined to identify the pufferfish species consumed and whether it contained tetrodotoxin, he said, adding that the bureau is investigating the source of the pufferfish.
Under the Act Governing Food Safety and Sanitation (食品安全衛生管理法), food or food additives that contain toxins, such as pufferfish, are not allowed to be produced, processed, stored, sold or given as gifts, so in principle, the FDA discourages restaurants from serving pufferfish, and people from catching and eating them, Lin said.
Restaurants that serve pufferfish resulting in food poisoning face a fine of NT$60,000 to NT$200 million (US$1,901 to US$6.34 million), and if the case is serious, the restaurant could be ordered to shut down, while the manager might face a prison sentence, he said.
A magnitude 6.4 earthquake struck off the coast of Hualien County in eastern Taiwan at 7pm yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The epicenter of the temblor was at sea, about 69.9km south of Hualien County Hall, at a depth of 30.9km, it said. There were no immediate reports of damage resulting from the quake. The earthquake’s intensity, which gauges the actual effect of a temblor, was highest in Taitung County’s Changbin Township (長濱), where it measured 5 on Taiwan’s seven-tier intensity scale. The quake also measured an intensity of 4 in Hualien, Nantou, Chiayi, Yunlin, Changhua and Miaoli counties, as well as
Taiwan is to have nine extended holidays next year, led by a nine-day Lunar New Year break, the Cabinet announced yesterday. The nine-day Lunar New Year holiday next year matches the length of this year’s holiday, which featured six extended holidays. The increase in extended holidays is due to the Act on the Implementation of Commemorative and Festival Holidays (紀念日及節日實施條例), which was passed early last month with support from the opposition Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party. Under the new act, the day before Lunar New Year’s Eve is also a national holiday, and Labor Day would no longer be limited
COMMITMENTS: The company had a relatively low renewable ratio at 56 percent and did not have any goal to achieve 100 percent renewable energy, the report said Pegatron Corp ranked the lowest among five major final assembly suppliers in progressing toward Apple Inc’s commitment to be 100 percent carbon neutral by 2030, a Greenpeace East Asia report said yesterday. While Apple has set the goal of using 100 percent renewable energy across its entire business, supply chain and product lifecycle by 2030, carbon emissions from electronics manufacturing are rising globally due to increased energy consumption, it said. Given that carbon emissions from its supply chain accounted for more than half of its total emissions last year, Greenpeace East Asia evaluated the green transition performance of Apple’s five largest final
Taiwan is to extend its visa-waiver program for Philippine passport holders for another year, starting on Aug. 1, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said on Friday. Lin made the announcement during a reception in Taipei marking the 127th anniversary of Philippine independence and the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the Manila Economic and Cultural Office (MECO) in Taiwan, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. The decision reflected Taiwan’s commitment to deepening exchanges with the Philippines, the statement cited Lin as saying, adding that it was a key partner under the New Southbound Policy launched in 2016. Lin also expressed hope
RSS