Clipping Board » Illness Enters through Mouth ─ The information that has been made public is often just the tip of the iceberg...
Update Date: 2008/10/09 09:18
(Central News Agency reporter Cao Yufan, Tel Aviv, 9th)
The milk sold by Israel's well-known food company "Nova" has been confirmed through testing to contain 1% silicone derivative. After the case was tried by the Tel Aviv District Court, a fine of 55 million shekels (approximately NT$501.6 million) was imposed.
Nova is Israel's largest food supplier, established in 1926, owned by the collective farms "Kibbutz" and "Moshav," and responsible for the purchase, processing, and wholesale of over 70% of agricultural products within Israel.
The Livestock Research Institute of the Council of Agriculture, Executive Yuan, Republic of China, sent personnel to Israel to study animal husbandry and veterinary medicine and also visited Nova's dairy processing plant. However, this sizable agricultural company was heavily fined for being found to contain silicone derivatives in its milk.
The Tel Aviv District Court ruled that Nova, Israel's largest food supplier, was fined 55 million shekels for selling milk that harmed the health of consumers and plaintiffs, and must also compensate the Israel Consumer Protection Association with 250,000 shekels.
The case originated in September 1995 when newspapers extensively reported that Nova's "Longevity Brand" skim milk was suspected to contain the silicone derivative polydimethylsiloxane.
Polydimethylsiloxane, also known as dimethicone, is a colorless and odorless liquid primarily used as an ingredient in cosmetics such as skin creams and lotions, softening hair and providing a smooth skin feel.
However, Nova firmly denied the allegations and published two full-page advertisements to clear its name. The Ministry of Health immediately conducted tests, confirming the media reports were accurate, and demanded Nova immediately destroy all Longevity Brand skim milk on the shelves.
But some people still claimed their health was harmed, extensively collected information, and insisted on filing a lawsuit, receiving assistance from the Israel Consumer Protection Association. Although the court attempted to mediate between the two parties hoping for a settlement, it failed, leading to a court battle with a total of 220,000 plaintiffs.
The court's ruling stated that Nova's handling of the situation after the incident was intolerable. Initially, they claimed that most consumers did not care about the addition of silicone derivatives in milk.
The court said that Nova clearly knew that if the public learned about food hygiene and health-related issues, it would cause panic, but Nova only wanted to suppress the news and calm the situation, depriving consumers of their right to know.
The court also required Nova to allocate the 55 million shekels for three purposes. One-third should be used for price reductions or increasing product packaging capacity without raising prices to benefit consumers. Another third should be donated to food, nutrition, and public health research, and the remaining third should be used to purchase milk for charitable organizations to provide for those in need. 971009
Source: http://tw. news. yahoo. com/ article/ url/ d/ a/ 081009/ 5/ 17c7w. html
Israeli Food Company Fined $500 Million for Adding Silicone to Milk
(Central News Agency reporter Cao Yufan, Tel Aviv, 9th)
The milk sold by Israel's well-known food company "Nova" has been confirmed through testing to contain 1% silicone derivative. After the case was tried by the Tel Aviv District Court, a fine of 55 million shekels (approximately NT$501.6 million) was imposed.
Nova is Israel's largest food supplier, established in 1926, owned by the collective farms "Kibbutz" and "Moshav," and responsible for the purchase, processing, and wholesale of over 70% of agricultural products within Israel.
The Livestock Research Institute of the Council of Agriculture, Executive Yuan, Republic of China, sent personnel to Israel to study animal husbandry and veterinary medicine and also visited Nova's dairy processing plant. However, this sizable agricultural company was heavily fined for being found to contain silicone derivatives in its milk.
The Tel Aviv District Court ruled that Nova, Israel's largest food supplier, was fined 55 million shekels for selling milk that harmed the health of consumers and plaintiffs, and must also compensate the Israel Consumer Protection Association with 250,000 shekels.
The case originated in September 1995 when newspapers extensively reported that Nova's "Longevity Brand" skim milk was suspected to contain the silicone derivative polydimethylsiloxane.
Polydimethylsiloxane, also known as dimethicone, is a colorless and odorless liquid primarily used as an ingredient in cosmetics such as skin creams and lotions, softening hair and providing a smooth skin feel.
However, Nova firmly denied the allegations and published two full-page advertisements to clear its name. The Ministry of Health immediately conducted tests, confirming the media reports were accurate, and demanded Nova immediately destroy all Longevity Brand skim milk on the shelves.
But some people still claimed their health was harmed, extensively collected information, and insisted on filing a lawsuit, receiving assistance from the Israel Consumer Protection Association. Although the court attempted to mediate between the two parties hoping for a settlement, it failed, leading to a court battle with a total of 220,000 plaintiffs.
The court's ruling stated that Nova's handling of the situation after the incident was intolerable. Initially, they claimed that most consumers did not care about the addition of silicone derivatives in milk.
The court said that Nova clearly knew that if the public learned about food hygiene and health-related issues, it would cause panic, but Nova only wanted to suppress the news and calm the situation, depriving consumers of their right to know.
The court also required Nova to allocate the 55 million shekels for three purposes. One-third should be used for price reductions or increasing product packaging capacity without raising prices to benefit consumers. Another third should be donated to food, nutrition, and public health research, and the remaining third should be used to purchase milk for charitable organizations to provide for those in need. 971009
Source: http://tw. news. yahoo. com/ article/ url/ d/ a/ 081009/ 5/ 17c7w. html