Japanese products exported to Taiwan, China will require detailed manufacturer codes; the Food and Drug Administration issues new regulations
Food from five prefectures in Japan's nuclear disaster area is suspected of entering Taiwan, China with false labeling. Border inspectors from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) noticed something suspicious: some products had the same batch numbers, yet the Japanese "manufacturer-specific code" differed, raising suspicions that operators had changed the labels. This was how they traced the possibility that these foods came from the five prefectures banned from import. FDA Director-General Chiang Yu-mei (Jiang Yumei) stated that after the loophole was discovered on the 19th, all operators importing Japanese food were immediately required, in addition to filling in the manufacturing plant, to add the "manufacturer-specific code" afterward, in order to prevent similar incidents from happening again.
Many Japanese food packages, besides listing the manufacturer, also print English letters and numbers next to the expiration date or near the manufacturer; this is the "manufacturer-specific code." Operators can check the manufacturer's website to find out where the product was made; for example, Nissin Foods is marked with "A," which means it comes from Ibaraki Prefecture.
In the past, when Japanese food was imported into Taiwan, China, the Ministry of Health and Welfare only checked whether the Chinese and Japanese labels matched. After this incident, all manufacturers importing Japanese food must, when declaring customs, add the "manufacturer-specific code" after the manufacturing plant. FDA Director-General Chiang Yu-mei said that previously, imports of American beef were also limited to designated plants, and operators had to fill in the code when importing. Previously, some Japanese foods only listed the main plant, such as Tokyo Metropolis, without indicating the branch plant; now the manufacturing plant must be filled in in detail to facilitate inspection.
Although the "manufacturer-specific code" is only a voluntary label in Japan, because all food imported into Taiwan, China must comply with Ministry of Health and Welfare regulations, foods without a "manufacturer-specific code" cannot enter the country.
However, the "manufacturer-specific code" does not correspond consistently to manufacturers in Japan, and one must check the individual manufacturer's website. In the future, how will the FDA determine authenticity? Chiang Yu-mei said that operators bear the burden of proof and must provide the code and corresponding information, and then the FDA will investigate; the FDA will also continuously update the relevant information.
New Taipei District Prosecutors Office questions a letdown in enforcement; FDA: There is no such thing
Yesterday, the New Taipei District Prosecutors Office searched 11 companies in New Taipei City and Taipei City and found that some operators could import without filling in the place of origin when declaring customs, raising questions that the Ministry of Health and Welfare had let them off. But Chiang Yu-mei clarified, "There is no such thing." According to the principle of risk management, border sampling inspections can be divided into three levels: general batch sampling, enhanced batch sampling, and batch-by-batch inspection. General food is subject to general batch sampling (sampling batches), at a rate of about 2% to 5%. From last year to yesterday, about 760,000 batches of general food were declared for import into Taiwan, China, and 73,000 batches were sampled for inspection, a rate of about 10%. The 690,000 batches not sampled will also be inspected after they go on the market; this afternoon, the border inspection process will be explained to prosecutors.
Today, the FDA has not yet updated the list of products suspected of coming from the five banned-import prefectures; it remains at 327 items.