Taipei, Oct. 17 (CNA) Frozen crabs from Pakistan, dried lily bulbs from China and frozen fish from Vietnam found to contain excessive pesticide residues and other contaminants were recently intercepted at Taiwan’s border, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) reported Tuesday.
In its weekly report on border seizures, the FDA said a 2,312-kilogram shipment of frozen red-spotted swimming crabs from Pakistan imported by Rohsin Trade Co., Ltd. was found to contain cadmium at a level of 1.1mg/kg, compared with a permissible level of 0.5mg/kg.
Other imports blocked due to excessive cadmium levels included a 9,800-kg shipment of dried lily bulbs imported by Favor Land C.M. Co., Ltd. from China and an 850-kg shipment of Vietnamese silver anchovies, according to the FDA.
Meanwhile, a shipment of Japanese grapes was intercepted after being found with residues of cyclaniliprole, a type of pesticide banned from being used on grapes in Taiwan, FDA said.
As the seizure was the fourth involving Japanese grapes in six months, the FDA would increase the frequency of checks on imports from the country, FDA Deputy Director-General Lin Chin-fu (林金富) told CNA over the phone.
According to the FDA, it is standard practice to destroy or repatriate shipments intercepted at Taiwan’s border.
Meanwhile, Lin said the FDA would again contact the Italian Economic, Trade and Cultural Promotion Office in Taipei to raise the issue of excessive levels of cadmium found in Perigord truffle imports from the country.
From Jan. 1 to Oct. 15, seven out of a total of 95 shipments of Italian Perigord truffles had been seized for containing excessive levels of cadmium following random checks of 30 of them, FDA data showed.
According to the FDA, inspectors are now performing checks on all Italian Perigord truffles imported by the three companies responsible for the seven rejected shipments.
The FDA said it had increased the frequency of inspections of Italian Perigord truffles imported by other companies to 50 percent of all shipments since Aug. 29.
