Taichung spot checks Ting Wang: all 44 food ingredient items pass

(Central News Agency reporter Hao Xueqing, Taichung, March 17) The Taichung City Health Bureau today released the results of spot checks on Ting Wang's food ingredients, stating that all 44 items of various food ingredients tested, including for pesticides, preservatives and hygiene standards, met the regulations.

Health Bureau Director Huang Meina went to the municipal meeting this morning to report on "the whole course of the Ting Wang hot pot incident." She said the Health Bureau, from February 20 to March 10, successively conducted spot checks on the food ingredients used by Ting Wang's 6 branches in Taichung City, and the test results were announced today.

Huang Meina pointed out that this time the Health Bureau conducted spot checks on a total of 44 food ingredient items from Ting Wang Spicy Hot Pot, Wu Lao Guo, Yan Xuan Barbecue, Yue Coffee and other stores as well as the central factory and logistics warehouse, testing them respectively for pesticides, preservatives, hygiene standards and other items, all of which met the regulations. The entire case has also been referred to the Taipei District Prosecutors Office for investigation.

The Health Bureau said the spot check items included heavy metals in various salts and lean meat powder in beef at Yan Xuan Barbecue; at Wu Lao Guo, preservatives in duck blood, lean meat powder in snowflake beef, pesticide residues in organic goji berries, and preservatives in ice cream tofu; at Ting Wang Spicy Hot Pot, pesticide residues in shrimp balls, fish balls, cuttlefish balls, scallop paste and shimeji mushrooms, and pesticide residues in cabbage; and at Yue Coffee, pesticide residues in two kinds of coffee.

Huang Meina pointed out that in the future, irregular inspections will be conducted on the raw materials and labeling claims of the relevant stores and warehouses of the Ting Wang Group, and inspections will also be carried out on the raw materials, soup bases, and process hygiene as well as labeling, publicity or advertising of other hot pot catering operators in the jurisdiction, and hygiene lectures and educational training will be strengthened.

Since the branches of the Ting Wang Group were exposed for false advertising, they have been fined by the Health Bureau a total of NT$3.8 million, including a NT$200,000 fine for false claims on the menu, a NT$1.8 million fine for false claims on the Yan Xuan Barbecue webpage, a NT$800,000 fine for claims on the official website involving medical efficacy, and a NT$1 million fine for the operator evading inspection. In addition, they were fined NT$360,000 by the Taichung City Urban Development Bureau for illegal use and illegal construction. In total, they have been fined NT$4.16 million by the city government.

Regarding outside questions that, given Ting Wang's annual turnover of more than NT$1 billion, the amount of the fines means nothing at all, Huang Meina said in response that a request will be made to the central authorities to amend the Act Governing Food Safety and Sanitation, so as to include "false advertising" within the scope of penalties for "improper gains." 1030317