WHO notified of Taiwan's beverage contamination case

Publication Date：05/26/2011  Source： Taiwan Today  The World Health Organization has been notified of a contamination case involving beverages tainted with the plasticizer diethylhexylphthalate (DEHP), according to the Department of Health May 26. "As a responsible stakeholder in the global health community, Taiwan has an obligation to report such incidents to the WHO," said Feng Jun–lan, a deputy head with the DOH Food and Drug Administration. The DOH announcement came after results of a nationwide investigation May 23 found bottled sports drinks containing DEHP. Commonly used to produce plasticware, the chemical is banned in food manufacturing with no prior cases of contamination reported in Taiwan. DEHP traces were found in the clouding agent used to produce sports drinks, juice, lactic acid powder, jam and health food, the DOH said. Clouding agents give a more natural appearance to beverages with low juice content. Affected manufacturers such as Chang Gung Biotechnology Corp., King Car group and Young Energy Source Co. Ltd. have issued recalls for tainted products. So far, this has resulted in more than 21 tons of food and nearly half a million bottled beverages being removed from store shelves, the DOH said. Ongoing investigations also reveal the tainted clouding agent has been supplied to food producers in Hong Kong, the Philippines, U.S. and Vietnam. "We have informed health authorities in those countries and will keep all parties updated as new information becomes available," Feng said. (JSM)