Toxic dye found in Taichung pepper powder prompts recall

Taipei, April 13 (CNA) A pepper powder product submitted by Taichung food industry operators for voluntary testing was found to contain an industrial dye known as Sudan IV and is currently being removed from store shelves, the city government announced on Saturday.

The Taichung Office of Food and Drug Safety reported that the "Gu Yue powder," supplied by Taichung-based Luye Foods Corp., tested positive for Sudan IV, a red-colored chemical classified as toxic in Taiwan.

As a result, the office said, it has asked 25 downstream buyers in Taichung and areas like Changhua County, Miaoli County, Nantou County, and New Taipei to stop selling the product and to recall it.

The black pepper used for the product was imported by Taipei-based H&S Agush Enterprise Co., Ltd. and New Taipei-based Syn Green Enterprise Co., Ltd., the office said, adding that it is coordinating with local health authorities for further investigations.

Taiwan's Food and Drug Administration (TFDA), whose double-testing of the product also confirmed the existence of Sudan IV on April 12, said it was the country's first detection of the substance since 2021.

The toxic dye may have entered Taiwan before early March, the TFDA said, when it escalated regulatory measures after a similar case involving chili powder, and subjected all imported chili powder to batch-by-batch border inspection.

The TFDA said it is currently checking if the product was part of the 24 batches of problematic chili power imported from China over the past three years.