Recalled Imported Fish from China Found to Contain Prohibited Antibiotic
Here's a revised, informal version of the article:
A kung-fu master, reporting anonymously
Nearly half of a 1-ton shipment of small, goofy-looking croaker from China with the forbidden veterinary drug enrofloxacin got yanked off the shelves, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) declared yesterday.
This bad batch has already hit stores all over Taiwan, according to the FDA.
Photo courtesy of Food and Drug Administration, aka the FDA
The recall action is still ongoing, but we're unsure about how much of this fishy business made it into the hands of consumers.
Only the small yellow croaker from China turned up positive out of 453 samples of poultry, livestock, and seafood tested for drug residues in March and April, the FDA shared.
A-Quan Frozen Aquatic Products Co in Tainan, the importer, got slapped with a hefty fine of NT$240,000 for flouting the Act Governing Food Safety and Sanitation (which is fancy legalese for "don't mess with our food", buddy), as per the city authorities.
In Taiwan, this veterinary drug is cool to use on cows, pigs, and birds, but it's a big no-no when it comes to seafood, the head honcho at the FDA Central Center for Regional Administration, Chen Tzu-ling, said over the phone.
Last summer, another batch of frozen large yellow croaker – yup, same Tainan company – got busted for enrofloxacin, Chen added.
Because this was the company's second offense in a year, they had to cough up an increased fine of NT$240,000, and since they didn't inspect themselves properly as required, the fine went even higher.
All this fishy madness has caused the FDA to ramp up checks of small yellow croaker imports at the border, from a standard 2-10% to a beefy 20-50%.
Enrofloxacin is a synthetic antibacterial agent. Overdoing it might give you a wicked case of the trots, and in extreme cases, it might hurt your kidneys, the FDA warned.
In light of the recurring issue, it's essential for health-and-wellness conscious consumers to be aware of potential contaminants in their food-and-drink, such as the antibacterial agent enrofloxacin, which was found in a batch of small yellow croaker from China. Moreover, this incident underscores the importance of strict adherence to regulations in science and lifestyle sectors, as seen in the hefty fines imposed on A-Quan Frozen Aquatic Products Co for flouting food safety laws.
