Clipping Board » Illness Enters through Mouth ─ The information that has been made public is often just the tip of the iceberg...
PTS (2009-12-07 23:48)
Authorities have repeatedly discovered meat mixed into vegetarian products, yet the same issue persists without improvement. Consumer protection officers recently conducted spot checks at unprocessed vegetarian food factories across various regions and still found some vegetarian meatballs containing up to three types of meat. Some businesses were not registered with the Ministry of Economic Affairs, and the phone numbers on their packaging were unreachable—essentially ghost factories.
Can you tell if meat is mixed into vegetarian food? Among the 35 vegetarian products displayed on the table, the vegetarian meatballs and Xian Ji Guo balls produced by Daqian Co., Ltd. in Yunlin, as well as the vegetarian meatballs from Xianglin Vegetarian Workshop, were found to contain meat—up to three different types. The recurring issue of meat mixed into vegetarian products has left the public baffled.
Vegetarian meatballs turning into meat-filled ones has prompted consumer protection officers to prepare fines ranging from NT$60,000 to NT$300,000 for Daqian Co., Ltd., along with fraud charges. However, attempts to track down the company proved futile. The packaging only listed a phone number, but calls went unanswered, and the company was not registered with the Ministry of Economic Affairs—essentially a ghost company.
Even among other vegetarian products without meat contamination, packaging labels were often unclear. Some were found to contain milk but were only labeled as "egg vegetarian." As a result, consumer protection officers are urging local health bureaus to strengthen routine inspections to ensure peace of mind for vegetarians.
Reported by Chen Xiaoqing and Chen Changwei in Taipei.
Source: http://news. sina. com. tw/ article/ 20091207/ 2503591. html
Fake Vegetarian Foods with Meat Raise Consumer Concerns (Video)
Authorities have repeatedly discovered meat mixed into vegetarian products, yet the same issue persists without improvement. Consumer protection officers recently conducted spot checks at unprocessed vegetarian food factories across various regions and still found some vegetarian meatballs containing up to three types of meat. Some businesses were not registered with the Ministry of Economic Affairs, and the phone numbers on their packaging were unreachable—essentially ghost factories.
Can you tell if meat is mixed into vegetarian food? Among the 35 vegetarian products displayed on the table, the vegetarian meatballs and Xian Ji Guo balls produced by Daqian Co., Ltd. in Yunlin, as well as the vegetarian meatballs from Xianglin Vegetarian Workshop, were found to contain meat—up to three different types. The recurring issue of meat mixed into vegetarian products has left the public baffled.
Vegetarian meatballs turning into meat-filled ones has prompted consumer protection officers to prepare fines ranging from NT$60,000 to NT$300,000 for Daqian Co., Ltd., along with fraud charges. However, attempts to track down the company proved futile. The packaging only listed a phone number, but calls went unanswered, and the company was not registered with the Ministry of Economic Affairs—essentially a ghost company.
Even among other vegetarian products without meat contamination, packaging labels were often unclear. Some were found to contain milk but were only labeled as "egg vegetarian." As a result, consumer protection officers are urging local health bureaus to strengthen routine inspections to ensure peace of mind for vegetarians.
Reported by Chen Xiaoqing and Chen Changwei in Taipei.
Source: http://news. sina. com. tw/ article/ 20091207/ 2503591. html