"AMOJE, Spicy Samgyeop Deopbap Sugar Content Higher Than Indicated... Improvement Plan Submitted"
"Lotte Shopping, Logon Commerce, The Bbab, SPC Samlip, Safety Warning Insufficient... Introduction Plan Submitted"
[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] The calorie content of meal replacement cup rice was found to be low, while the sodium content was high. The Korea Consumer Agency demanded corrections, stating that the sugar content in products made by some companies such as Amoje, Lotte Shopping, and SPC Samlip was higher than the labeled values, and safety warning labels were insufficient.
The Consumer Agency announced on the 2nd the results of an investigation into 13 cup rice products, including spicy pork rice bowls and yukgaejang soup rice bowls, regarding their nutritional content, ingredient composition, spicy components, safety, and labeling compliance.
The calorie content of meal replacement cup rice was about 21.7% of the daily energy intake reference of 2000 kcal, which was considered low to replace a full meal. Sodium accounted for 50.3% of the daily standard of 2000 mg. The Consumer Agency evaluated this as a concern for nutritional imbalance.
There were no safety issues related to microorganisms, foreign substances, or packaging container leaching. However, the nutritional labeling of some products differed from the actual content. Some companies also inadequately displayed safety warning labels despite the risk of burns due to high temperatures after cooking.
Among the products, 'Jeyuk Cupbap' made by Thebbap had the highest calorie content at 625 kcal among spicy pork rice bowls. CJ CheilJedang's 'Cheolpan Jeyuk Deopbap' had the lowest at 368 kcal.
Lotte Shopping's 'Spicy Jeyuk Deopbap' contained the highest sodium at 1337 mg among the 13 products. Logon Commerce's 'Jeyuk Bulgogi Bap' had the lowest at 408 mg.
Among yukgaejang soup rice bowls, SPC Samlip's 'Yukgaejang Gukbap' had the highest calorie content at 392 kcal, while Emart's 'Yukgaejang Cup Gukbap' had the lowest at 313 kcal.
SPC Samlip's 'Yukgaejang Gukbap' contained the highest sodium at 1532 mg. Emart's 'Yukgaejang Cup Gukbap' had the lowest at 1043 mg.
The capsaicin content, which is the spicy component, varied up to 12 times per 100g among products.
The capsaicin content per product in spicy pork rice bowls ranged from 0.4 to 2.9 mg, and per 100g ranged from 0.1 to 1.2 mg.
CJ CheilJedang's 'Cheolpan Jeyuk Deopbap' had the highest content at 1.2 mg per 100g, while Ourhome's 'Jeyuk Kimchi Deopbap' had the lowest at 0.1 mg.
Yukgaejang soup rice bowls contained 1.3 to 1.8 mg of capsaicin per product. The content per 100g was 0.3 mg for all products.
Some products required improvements in nutritional content and warning labels.
Amoje's 'Spicy Samgyeop Deopbap' contained 17g of sugar, which was 7g more than the 10g indicated on the product label.
The Consumer Agency stated, "Amoje Food System responded that they have plans to improve quality control and labeling."
Lotte Shopping's 'Spicy Jeyuk Deopbap', Logon Commerce's 'Jeyuk Bulgogi Bap', Thebbap's 'Jeyuk Cupbap', and SPC Samlip's 'Yukgaejang Gukbap' were found to have container surface temperatures reaching up to 85℃ and contents up to 94℃ during cooking.
There is a risk of burns when holding the container or opening the lid, but safety warning labels were insufficient and need improvement.
The Consumer Agency reported, "Lotte Shopping, Logon Commerce, Thebbap, and SPC Samlip responded that they plan to introduce safety warning labels."
No foreign substances were detected in any products. Microorganisms, preservatives, and container leaching levels also met the standards set by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety.
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