Dynas International Corp (威加國際) has been fined NT$3 million (US$92,914) after failing to provide evidence to verify that its camellia oil was produced from Alishan (阿里山)-grown tea seeds, the Taipei Department of Health said yesterday.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) last week received a report from Yuen Foong Yu Biotech (永豐餘生技) that said several batches of camellia oil contained 2.9 micrograms per kilogram (mcg/kg) of the carcinogen benzopyrene, exceeding Taiwan’s legal limit of 2mcg/kg.
The tainted batches were produced by Yuan Chuen Oil Mill (源春製油廠) in Chiayi County, which is subcontracted by Dynas.
Photo courtesy of the Taipei Department of Health
The corporation could not substantiate advertising claims that its camellia oil products were made from tea seeds sourced from small-scale farmers in Alishan in Chiayi County.
It could only provide photographs and videos of tea seed harvesting supplied by a purchasing agent and could not provide evidence that those seeds were actually used to manufacture the oil, inspectors said.
It was fined for contravening Article 47-12 of the Act Governing Food Safety and Sanitation (食品安全衛生管理法) for providing inaccurate information as evidence.
The company is accused of importing camellia seeds from China, mixing them with other seeds and contracting Yuan Chuen for processing, the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said this week.
The discovery follows a scandal last month in which it was found that soybean cooking oil produced by Central Oil Corp (中聯油脂) contained excessive levels of benzopyrene, affecting more than 13,000 downstream businesses.
The department said it has launched a third round of investigations across manufacturers, supermarkets, hypermarkets, convenience stores and online retailers to test camellia oil for benzopyrene.
The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office opened an investigation into Dynas on Friday last week at the direction of the High Prosecutors’ Office, and on Tuesday searched 17 locations and brought seven people in for questioning.
In a separate case, a camellia oil product sold by Juxing Oil Mill (聚興製油工廠) in Tainan was also found to contain excessive levels of benzopyrene, the department said.
The oil was purchased from Yuan-fa Oil Mill (源發製油工廠) in Chiayi, repackaged and sold, it said.
The batch was supplied by Taipei-based Universal Cherng Industrial Co Ltd (緯承實業), which also sold camellia seeds across Taipei, Taoyuan, Yunlin County and Pingtung County, it said.
Local health authorities would determine whether those products comply with food safety regulations, it added.
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