Taiwan destroys tainted lard products

TAIPEI - Taiwan's Taipei and Tainan cities on Friday destroyed 52.89 tonnes of products made with tainted lard following the latest food scandal to rock the island.

Taipei's public health authority dumped 530 kg of sweet bean paste and cakes into a waste treatment plant, while their Tainan counterparts threw 52.36 tonnes of 15 products believed to be laced with the tainted lard into an incinerator.

A Taipei official who oversaw the destruction said more illegal products will be destroyed as the authorities keeps on probing the scandal.

Taiwan has been in the grip of fear and anger since the island's police busted a ring selling hundreds of tonnes of recycled cooking oil made from kitchen waste and grease from leather processing plants on Sept 4.

Chang Guann, a well-established cooking oil supplier on the island, produced 782 tonnes of lard from the oil before selling it on to hundreds of food companies and restaurants.

Over 1,000 businesses, including leading brands such as Wei Chuan, Vedan, Want Want and Master Kong, were identified as having used the oil.

The scandal has caused massive recalls of products ranging from cakes to instant noodles.

Local public heath authorities across Taiwan had confiscated 442.3 tonnes of contaminated products by Friday afternoon, according to the island's food and drug watchdog.