Over 40,000 kg of Chinese dried chili seized at Taiwan border

Taipei, April 30 (CNA) Three shipments of dried chili imported from China totaling 41,040 kilograms were recently intercepted at Taiwan's border after being found to contain excessive pesticide residue, Taiwan's Food and Drug Administration (TFDA) said Tuesday.

The Chinese dried chili shipments were all found to contain chlormequat -- a pesticide that can be used as a plant growth regulator -- at concentrations ranging from 0.13 to 5.27 parts per million (ppm), exceeding the non-detectable limit, TFDA Deputy Director-General Lin Chin-fu (林金富) said.

In Taiwan, residue tolerances for chlormequat have been established for only nine products, including barley, wheat, and wheat flour, but not for dried chili, which falls into the category of fruits and vegetables, Lin said.

The three shipments of contaminated dried chili have either been destroyed or returned to their country of origin, he added.

According to the information provided by the TFDA, the goods seized from the three shipments were accepted for inspection on April 2 and imported from the Chinese company Ningxia Shun Yuan Tang Herbal Biotech Co., Ltd by Show Go Co. Ltd. in Taoyuan.

However, the package of seized dried chili in the photo provided by the TFDA did not display any brand name.

Due to the widespread use of Chinese chili powder contaminated with Sudan red dyes in Taiwan, the TFDA has conducted batch-by-batch border inspections on chili powder imported from China since Dec. 11, 2023.

According to Lin, a total of 35 food items that fall under the categories of "spices" and "seasoning sauce," including dried chili and chili powder, have been subjected to batch-by-batch border inspections for Sudan dyes and pesticides since March 6, regardless of the country of origin of the items.

In addition to the three shipments of contaminated dried chili, eight other food shipments and a shipment of cutting boards were also seized at the border, according to the weekly report.

Those eight shipments of food products included a shipment of fish sauce from Vietnam containing a bleaching agent that exceeded the allowed limit, a shipment of dried peaches from Thailand that contained excessive sweeteners, and a shipment of seasoned perilla leaves from Korea containing a preservative exceeding the permitted limit.