Ding Wang Spicy Hot Pot tainted by feed-grade oil, firm tofu also uses industrial gypsum powder
Ding Wang Spicy Hot Pot had only just been implicated in the tainted feed-oil scandal a few days earlier, and now its firm tofu has run into problems again. Yesterday Ding Wang reported to the Taoyuan Health Bureau that it had used Yongchang gypsum powder, and the problematic raw material has been sealed and sent for testing. The test report will not be released until next week, but as many as 6,709 kg of gypsum tofu may already have been eaten.
The Taoyuan Health Bureau stated that since June of this year the company had used calcium sulfate made by Yongchang to produce "firm tofu." It purchased 45 packs (30 kg/pack) and had already used 34 packs, and starting on November 14 it stopped using the ingredient on its own initiative in response to the news. Ding Wang sets a 12-day shelf life for its "firm tofu" products. Estimating by the expiration date, products still within the shelf life totaled 4,374 slabs (2.1 kg/slab), and 1,179 slabs (2,475.9 kg in total) remained in the factory inventory. These have been sealed and taken out of use, and the stores have been notified to stop using and destroy them.
In addition to Ding Wang, the Health Bureau also announced that Chuan Wu Foods and Xin Penglai Foods have both stopped using Yongchang's gypsum. The products made by Chuan Wu Foods Co., Ltd. with an "expiration date of 2014.12.23" are products made after switching to qualified gypsum; the products made by Xin Penglai Foods Co., Ltd. with a "valid date of 2016.11.13" are products made after switching to qualified gypsum.
The Health Bureau calls on food businesses that use suspected non-food-grade raw materials to make and sell food to proactively report to the Health Bureau in accordance with Article 7 of the Act Governing Food Safety and Sanitation. If they fail to report proactively, once discovered they will be fined under Article 44 of the Act Governing Food Safety and Sanitation a fine of no less than NT$60,000 and no more than NT$50 million.
