Yunlin sheep meat with excessive dioxin levels kept off market: TFDA

Taipei, July 25 (CNA) Sheep meat linked to a farm in Yunlin County was found during a recent safety inspection to contain excessive levels of dioxins but did not enter the market, the Taiwan Food and Drug Administration (TFDA) said Saturday.

In a news release, the TFDA said meat from a sheep slaughtered on July 1 under the name of Yun Nong Farm (雲農畜牧場) was sampled during a random inspection conducted on July 6. After initial tests showed excessive dioxin levels on July 22, the agency launched a joint investigation with the Ministry of Agriculture (MOA), the Ministry of Environment (MOENV) and local authorities.

The meat contained 4.6 picograms of dioxins per gram of fat (pg/g fat), exceeding the limit of 2.5 pg/g fat, the TFDA said. The combined level of dioxins and dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) was 6.1 pg/g fat, also above the limit of 4.0 pg/g fat.

The TFDA said its investigation so far had found that the affected sheep meat did not enter the market. It noted, however, that 4 metric tons of milk products supplied by Chianan Goat Milk Farmers' Cooperative had been removed from store shelves as a precaution because they used dairy products from Yun Nong Farm.

Authorities later inspected the farm but were unable to identify potential dioxin sources within 1 kilometer of the site. Environmental sampling has been conducted to determine the source of the contamination, the TFDA said.

Dioxins are persistent environmental pollutants that can accumulate in animal fat and the food chain. Long-term exposure to high levels has been linked to health risks, including effects on the immune, reproductive and developmental systems.

At a separate event Saturday, Environment Minister Peng Chi-ming (彭啓明) told reporters that no obvious sources of dioxin contamination had been found near the farm. The ministry is still investigating whether the contamination may have originated from the air, water or the use of certain waste materials nearby, he said.

Asked whether incinerators were being checked as a possible source of airborne dioxins, Peng said dioxin concentrations around incinerators were far below permitted limits, allowing authorities to preliminarily rule them out as a concern.

He added that more data was needed to determine the source of the contamination, with results from environmental sampling in Yunlin expected next week.