Eggs with fipronil residues exceed the limit by up to 6 times; how are drug residues punished?
Food safety is an issue we are now very concerned about, so do you know what is going on with the food safety incident today?
Eggs sampled from Shunhong Ranch in Changhua County were found to have excessive fipronil residues, with detected levels of 0.03, 0.04 and 0.06 ppm (the residue standard is 0.01 ppm ). The Central Regional Management Center of the Food and Drug Administration immediately joined with relevant units to investigate the ranch. On site, 2,730 Taiwan jin of eggs in stock were counted (136.5 boxes, 20 Taiwan jin/box), and the health bureau has entrusted them for safekeeping and limited their recall and completion to before February 20. The Chemical Bureau of the Environmental Protection Administration and the local environmental protection bureau conducted an on-site inspection and found no use of environmental pesticides.
Health authorities traced the batch of non-compliant eggs from "Shunhong Ranch" and found that all of them were sold to Maoxin Hui Egg Company in Taipei City. An investigation found that the operator purchased a total of 374 boxes of this batch of eggs, totaling 7,480 Taiwan jin. In addition to selling them itself, it also shipped them to Shangqian Trading Company in New Taipei City (No. 9, Qingli Street, Tucheng District, New Taipei City) and Junling Agricultural Products Co., Ltd. (No. 68, Lane 121, Kinmen Street, Banqiao District, New Taipei City). After the New Taipei City Government Health Bureau inspected these 2 operators, it found that this batch of eggs had all been sold to individual retailers and breakfast businesses, and all had already been sold out with no stock remaining.
At present, the eggs confirmed to have fipronil residues total 7,480 Taiwan jin (the batch tested on January 25, sold on January 27-28), while Shunhong Ranch sold another 1,929 boxes of eggs between January 29 and February 13 (38,580 Taiwan jin, 380,580 eggs). Huang Jincheng, deputy chairman of the Council of Agriculture, said in response that these eggs may all have been "hit" and eaten by consumers, but because several days have passed, fipronil may not necessarily be detectable. "Fipronil metabolizes very quickly in hens. The problematic eggs from January 25 may no longer be detectable after the 27th."
According to the relevant provisions of the Act Governing Food Safety and Sanitation, eggs found not to comply with the "Standards for Permissible Pesticide Residues in Animal Products" shall have the non-compliant products confiscated and destroyed under Article 52 of the same Act to ensure the public's food safety. It also called on operators who discover that products may endanger health and safety to immediately voluntarily stop manufacturing, processing and selling, carry out recalls, and notify the competent authority of the municipality or county (city) in accordance with Article 7, Paragraph 5 of the Act Governing Food Safety and Sanitation. If products that were not reported in accordance with the law are discovered, a fine of no less than 30,000 yuan and no more than 3 million yuan will be imposed under Article 47 of the same Act.
The Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine explained that fipronil is mainly used as a pesticide, an environmental pesticide and an animal drug (limited to use in dogs and cats). It can be used to kill pests on crops as well as ticks, fleas and mites in the environment or on dogs and cats, but it is strictly prohibited for use in poultry and livestock raised for human consumption. If livestock and poultry operators illegally use fipronil, a fine of no less than NT$60,000 and no more than NT$300,000 may be imposed under the Animal Drugs Control Act. It called on operators not to defy the law and to safeguard the public's food safety.