Record compensation approved in Polam Kopitiam food poisoning case

Taipei, March 13 (CNA) The Taipei District Prosecutors Office decided on Tuesday that the relatives of six individuals who died as a result of a deadly food poisoning incident in March 2024 should receive a total of NT$10.8 million (US$327,528), setting a new record for compensation in a food safety case in Taiwan.

The six families have been approved to each receive NT$1.8 million as compensation for deaths connected to Polam Kopitiam, a Malaysian restaurant chain, in accordance with Taiwan's Crime Victim Rights Protection Act.

The fatal food poisoning incident at the Polam Kopitiam branch in Taipei's Xinyi District resulted in 33 individuals coming down with severe food poisoning after eating flat rice noodles, prosecutors said.

In January, Polam Kopitiam's owner, surnamed Li (黎), the manager of the Xinyi branch, surnamed Wang (王), two chefs, surnamed Chou (周) and Ho (胡), and an intern at the restaurant were all indicted for negligent homicide, negligent injury and violations of the Act Governing Food Safety and Sanitation, prosecutors said that month.

A preliminary investigation by the Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHW) determined that bongkrekic acid -- a rare and deadly toxin detected in all the victims -- caused the food poisoning, but was unable to say definitively where the acid came from.