Previously untested Central Union cooking oil passes safety tests: TFDA

Taipei, July 20 (CNA) The remaining batches of cooking oil made by the company Central Union Oil Corp. between April and June that had yet to undergo safety tests all met safety standards, the Taiwan Food and Drug Administration (TFDA) said Monday.

The TFDA said it had completed testing of all 30 batches the company produced during the period.

Seven batches had previously been confirmed to contain excessive levels of the carcinogen benzo[a]pyrene (BaP), setting off a major food safety scare that triggered widespread product recalls.

One batch was exported overseas and could not be sampled, while the remaining 22 batches -- including three that had not been shipped -- all tested negative for excessive levels of BaP, the agency said.

The TFDA tested 53 raw oil samples and 171 finished products. Of those four raw oil samples and five finished products failed the tests, but were all linked to two raw oil batches produced on April 8 and April 13 previously identified as having excessive BaP levels.

TFDA Deputy Director-General Wang Te-yuan (王德原) said the agency cross-checked lab findings with traceability records to determine the full scope of affected products, and the Food Safety Risk Assessment Advisory Committee will meet Tuesday to discuss whether products removed from shelves as a precaution can be returned to stores.

Also, an independent investigation team commissioned by the TFDA will inspect Central Union's factory on Tuesday to conduct a comprehensive review of its manufacturing and quality management processes to try to determine the cause of the contamination, with the investigation expected to be completed within a week, Wang said.

Meanwhile, the Cabinet said the Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHW) will submit amendments to the Act Governing Food Safety and Sanitation and related regulations for Cabinet review on Thursday.

The proposed revisions, prompted by the Central Union case, are expected to include tougher penalties for companies that delay, conceal or falsify reports of food safety incidents.

Central Union was fined NT$165.2 million for not immediately reporting in the second week of June that a batch of its soy-based cooking oil was found to contain four times the permitted level of BaP.

Instead, it disclosed the findings at the end of June, three weeks after learning of them, according to the MOHW in early July.

Other measures in the proposed revisions include stricter self-testing requirements for high-risk food businesses, expanded product traceability, and clearer rules governing product recalls, precautionary withdrawals and relisting.