TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Consumer Protection Committee (CPC) worked with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to inspect 61 drinks at 61 random locations across Taiwan, finding 10 labeling violations, the CPC announced in a press release on Wednesday (Sept. 1).
The labels on beverages at several stores did not reflect the true sugar and calorie levels, while four did not disclose the ingredients’ true place of origin. One sample, from a Tigersugar store in Taoyuan, violated both labeling requirements, according to CNA.
Of the seven samples that did not reflect the actual sugar and calorie content, five stores — Taoyuan ATT’s Tigersugar, Backpacker’s Lodge Foods, Zhubei Shengli’s Wanpo Tea Shop, Taichung Wenxin Showtime’s Yifang Tea, and Tainan Chongde’s Dain-Dain Hamburger — had labeled them incorrectly, mostly as having less sugar and fewer calories. Two others, Orange Tea and Tainan Fuqian’s Fresh and Natural, did not include the sugar count in the label at all.
Tigersugar at Taoyuan’s ATT, along with Ching Shin Fu Chuan Tea Station in Kaohsiung’s Zuoying District, displayed false origins for their ingredients, while Pingtung Feng Chia’s KFC and Truedan did not provide the information.
The CPC said the rules are in place so that stores can inform customers as they make a decision to purchase. Stores that mislabel information are subject to a fine of between NT$40,000 (US$1,442.61) and NT$4 million, and those that do not provide the information on labels are subject to penalties NT$30,000 to NT$3 million.
CPC holds press conference to announce inspection results. (CNA photo)
Additionally, the CPC found four samples containing more than 45 grams of sugar in a single cup. The samples were Taichung Truedan’s black sugar pearl milk tea (60.37 g), Kaohsiung Dayungs’ pearl milk tea (58.9 g), Kaohsiung 50 Lan’s pearl milk tea (50.27 g), and Taipei Kebuke’s white pearl milk tea (46.91 g).
A healthy adult weighing between 50 and 60 kilograms with a light physical workload should not consume more than 37.5 to 45 g of extra sugar, reported CNA. The CPC also encouraged people to drink at least six to eight cups of water in place of sugary drinks.
