September 4, 2007

Taiwan inspects local fish farms to check use of banned drugs
 

Taiwanese officials are visiting 10 fish farms in Taipei County to check for use of banned drugs in their seafood products after a random check in a supermarket showed that a trout shipment was contaminated with banned substances.

Sha Chih-yi, deputy director of the Fisheries Agency under the Council of Agriculture, said food safety officials had conducted a random check of hypermarket chain stores in northern Taiwan and discovered that trout sold at a store in Taoyuan County were contaminated with antibiotic drugs nitrofuran and nalectin.

The findings prompted the Fisheries Agency to investigate fish farms located in northern Taiwan.

Sha has also urged consumers not to purchase fish products from unknown sources and to buy certified products where available.

Taiwan earlier banned shrimp imports from China after residues of nitrofurans were found in the product.

Cheng said the concentration of nitrofuran metabolites detected ranged from 1.1 ppb to 30 ppb.