Two sauce products manufactured by Cheng Tai Soy Sauce Co. located in Yunlin County, southern Taiwan, were found to have contained over 1,500 parts per million (ppm) of the plasticizer DINP (diisononyle phthalate), more than 170 times the allowable level, according to findings of a market investigation released yesterday by the Department of Health under the Taipei City Government.
City health officials said that their department has just completed random examinations of 322 food products retailed in Taipei and found 10 of them contained excessive amounts of plasticizers DINP, DEHP (2-ethylhexyl phthalate) and DIDP (diisodecyl phthalate), which are deemed detrimental to human health in cases of excess intake.
Of the 10, the mushroom paste supplied by Cheng Tai was found to have a DINP content of up to 1,944.2 ppm, 216 times the allowable volume, and the Chinese Toona paste supplied by the same company saw DINP content reach 1,545.6 ppm, 171 times the standard level.
Chen Li-chi, director of the Food & Drug Division of the Department of Health of the Taipei City Government, noted that the extremely high content of plasticizer DINP in the two products by Cheng Tai might have resulted from the dissolution of DINP from the lining of the plastic bottle caps during production, storage and transportation of the products.
Among the other eight food products with excessive volumes of the plasticizer DINP were pineapple paste (with DEHP content of 16.9 ppm) offered by Shih Feng Food Co., a vegetarian barbecue sauce (DINP 342.9 ppm) supplied by Gu Wang Food Co., and Santa Cruz 100 per cent organic lemon juice (DIDP 7.2 ppm) offered by Uni-President Organics Corp. The other five products were found to have a DINP content of 12.7 ppm to 159.7 ppm, all higher than their respective allowable levels.
Chen said based on the standards released by the Cabinet-level Department of Health, the standard plasticizer volumes for oil- and paste-related products are set at DINP 9 ppm, DEHP 3 ppm, DIDP 9 ppm; and the standard volume for beverage products is set at DIDP 3 ppm.
Chen Li-chi noted that there is still a lack of solid information to show the level of damage that plasticizers can cause to humans, but it is certain that the more the material is absorbed, the greater its harm will be.
Meanwhile, Chiang Yu-mei, secretary-general of the Department of Health of the city government, said four of the 10 food companies whose products have contained excessive plasticizers are registered in Taipei and therefore her department will immediately ask these four companies to intensify examination of their food materials, manufacturing processes and final packaging materials to reduce the content of plasticizers.
In response, Cheng Tai showed certificates issued in August 2011 by the National Pingtung University of Science and Technology and National Formosa University indicating that the two examined mushroom and Chinese Toona paste products offered by the company had “zero” plasticizer content. The company said it is planning to seek national compensation for the damage to its reputation by the Taipei City Department of Health.
Meanwhile, Uni-President Organics Corp. also issued a statement clarifying that the company imported the raw materials for its Santa Cruz 100 per cent organic lemon juice from SMUCKER of the U.S., and no plastic additives have been added to the juice. The imported material is made of fresh organic lemon.
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