The Ministry of Health and Welfare yesterday fined a Pingtung County-based food company more than NT$50 million (US$1.64 million) for selling bleached pig intestines.
The company was found to have used industrial-grade hydrogen peroxide to bleach pig intestines and sold the product throughout Taiwan, affecting many restaurants and stalls over the Mid-Autumn Festival.
Speaking to reporters before a meeting of the Legislative Yuan’s Social Welfare and Environmental Committee meeting, Minister of Health and Welfare Shih Chung-liang (石崇良) said that a heavy fine would be issued later the same day according to the Act Governing Food Safety and Sanitation (食品安全衛生管理法).
Photo: Wang Yi-sung, Taipei Times
Joint statistics compiled by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and local health departments showed that 124.6 tonnes of the intestines did not enter the market, Shih said.
Meanwhile, 2.43 tonnes of the product had been taken off shelves, while 784kg was sold, he said.
The intestines were primarily sold to Hesheng Market in Pingtung and Ningxia Night Market in Taipei, he said.
Regarding discrepancies between data from the FDA and the Taipei Department of Health, Shih said this was mainly caused by duplicate entries during the auditing process.
After cross-checking financial records, authorities confirmed that the later figures were accurate and have since made corrections, he said.
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