Imports of 3 Korean chili powder makers suspended due to pesticides

Taipei, July 2 (CNA) The Taiwan Food and Drug Administration (TFDA) will suspend chili powder imports from three South Korean makers whose products were found to contain excessive pesticide residues, it said Tuesday.

Imports of their products will be suspended for one month or longer, the TFDA said.

Between Dec. 24, 2023, and June 24, 2024, 13 of 59 shipments of chili powder from South Korea did not meet import criteria because they contained excessive pesticides, a failure rate of 22.03 percent, according to the TFDA.

The 13 include four shipments, totaling 8,616 kilograms of chili powder from South Korea, listed in the latest rundown of items intercepted at Taiwan's borders issued by the TFDA Tuesday.

TFDA Deputy Director-General Lin Chin-fu (林金富) said in a phone interview that the agency has twice asked South Korean authorities for an explanation of the frequent violations and corrective measures taken by June 30, but no response had been received as of Tuesday.

Taiwan currently uses its strictest standards to inspect chili powder imports regardless of their place of origin after shipments of chili powder from China in 2023 and early 2024 were found to contain Sudan dyes, red chemical dyes banned in Taiwan for use in foodstuffs.

Under the standards, every shipment is subject to checks for Sudan dyes and pesticide residues, a practice expected to continue to March 5, 2025.

Including the chili powder from South Korea, a total of 14 items were listed by the TFDA on Tuesday as having been rejected at the border in recent weeks.

They include shipments of honey chipotle imported from the United States, black sesame seeds from Paraguay, white radishes from China, and white pepper and coriander seeds from Indonesia, all of which contained excessive pesticide residues, according to the TFDA.

The other items included vegetarian instant rice noodles from Vietnam that contained a banned preservative; and activated acid clay (used to refine fats and oils) from China and frozen tuna roe from Korea containing excessive amounts of heavy metals.