TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Flying Horse Curry Powder produced by Chiseng Hong Ltd. has been found to contain the carcinogenic industrial dye Sudan Red, also known as Sudan I, leading to a recall of 5,000 boxes of the product.
The discovery led the Ministry of Education to decide that schools around Taiwan will be prohibited from using the curry powder products in school lunches until Jan. 20, 2025.
A Food and Drug Administration (FDA) inspection of nine raw materials used in the curry powder, identified turmeric powder as the source of the Sudan Red content, per PTS.
The FDA said the turmeric powder had been imported to Taiwan before the inspection and control of Sudan Red was expanded this year. Other raw materials imported by the company, including dried chili peppers and chili powder, were found not to contain any prohibited chemicals, indicating control measures at the border have been effective.
FDA Food Safety Division Deputy Director Cheng Wei-chih (鄭維智) said, "Beginning yesterday, we have been conducting inspections of Indian turmeric for Sudan pigments. We will carry out inspections batch by batch for one year. I can tell you that at present, Sudan pigments found at our border will be destroyed and cannot be returned.”
In addition, the FDA said it would cooperate with local health bureaus to conduct a comprehensive check of Indian turmeric. This will include targeting curry powder and other products that are still within the validity period starting from 2022.
The FDA said the detection of Sudan Red in Flying Horse Curry Powder produced by Chiseng Hong Ltd. broke Article 15 of the Food Safety Law. Punishment means imprisonment of not more than seven years and a fine of NT$80 million (US$2.5 million).
