Banned Taiwan products monitored in Cordillera

THE Bureau of Food and Drugs (Bfad) started monitoring unregistered and contaminated Taiwan products in Cordillera region in order to assure these will not be sold in the market. 

Bfad Cordillera Officer Rochelle Te-elan Bayanes revealed monitoring has started on Taiwan products and will focus their surveillance in Baguio City, especially at the public market and grocery stores.

Bfad uses the post marketing surveillance technique where some of their staff will act as clients and after buying the unregulated products, they will send these to the central office of Bfad for laboratory tests.

Bayanes said they received the advisory from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on June 11 stating a total of 15 Taiwan products banned in the country because these are contaminated with maleic acid. 

The 15 contaminated products are Hong tapioca Starch, Redman black tapioca pearl, Sun Right Indica rice powder, Top 1 tapioca pearls, Tea World tapioca starch ball, unbranded starch ball, Ding Long tapioca pearls, Sun Chi noodles, T&M Resources Corp tapioca pearls; Pure Tea tapioca pearls (white); Pure Tea tapioca pearls (black); Full Free Yam tapioca ball; Long Kow vegetarian instant rice noodles; and Long Kow rice noodles with thick – soup. 

The contamination was discovered through the laboratory tests conducted by the Agri – Food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore. With the findings, the FDA later banned the entry of the products in the Philippines. 

FDA Acting Director General Kenneth Hartigan Go revealed on the advisory that Maleic acid is not an approved additive in manufacturing food products. 

“Long term consumption of high levels of maleic acid could harm the kidney,” the advisory read.

Meanwhile, Bayanes said maleic acid is a plasticizer which is being used for packing materials. 

The National Government banned the 15 products pursuant to Article 10 of Republic Act 7394 known as Consumer Act of the Philippines which prohibits the manufacture, importation, exportation, sale, offering for sale, distribution, transfer, non – consumer use, promotion, advertising, and sponsorship of any health product which is adultered, unregistered or misbranded products contaminated with maleic acid. 

Bayanes urged the public not to buy any products with foreign labels with no English translation to avoid consuming unregistered and contaminated goods. 

She also encouraged the public to patronize Filipino products rather than foreign products for safety purposes. 

DFA will only lift the ban once the products will be registered with the proper government bodies of the country prior to entry.

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