5 Places of Chinese-Made Kimchi Found Noncompliant More Than Twice... "Food Poisoning Bacteria Detected"

Added Yersinia enterocolitica Item... "Designated as Subject for Inspection Order"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Seo So-jung] The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (Minister Kim Gang-lip) announced on the 18th that, as a result of conducting inspections on imported kimchi and other imported foods during customs clearance and distribution stages from March 12 to the 7th of this month, kimchi from 5 overseas manufacturers was designated as subject to inspection orders after being found 'non-compliant' more than twice.

The inspection order system, according to Article 22 of the Special Act on Imported Food Safety Management, requires importers to undergo detailed inspections at testing institutions designated by the Minister of Food and Drug Safety for imported foods with high non-compliance rates or those raising safety concerns domestically or internationally, allowing import declarations only if the products are deemed compliant.

The Ministry confirmed non-compliance in some overseas manufacturers' kimchi products, including baechu kimchi, salted napa cabbage, and kimchi raw materials, and from the 17th, decided to add Yersinia enterocolitica (hereafter Yersinia) to the detailed inspection items for all newly imported kimchi beyond the existing inspection items.

Yersinia is a food poisoning bacterium widely present in natural environments such as water or soil and can grow at low temperatures of 0 to 5°C. Major symptoms include diarrhea, abdominal pain, and headache.

During the enhanced inspection period, the Ministry tested 289 Chinese kimchi products (from 55 manufacturers) declared for import for five items including preservatives, tar pigments, and Yersinia. As a result, Yersinia was detected in 15 products (from 11 manufacturers), confirming non-compliance.

During the same period, among four Chinese salted napa cabbage products (from 2 manufacturers) declared for import and tested for five items including enterohemorrhagic E. coli, two products (from one manufacturer) were found to contain unauthorized preservatives and were judged non-compliant.

Additionally, 30 imported kimchi products and 120 kimchi raw material products (such as red pepper powder and minced garlic) distributed domestically were collected and tested, resulting in one frozen minced garlic sample exceeding bacterial count standards.

The Ministry is disclosing information on the recall and disposal of non-compliant products on the Imported Food Information Maru platform and is proceeding with administrative actions against the business operators. Furthermore, if the same products are declared for import in the future, detailed inspections will be conducted consecutively five times.

The Ministry stated, "We will thoroughly block customs clearance to prevent non-compliant imported kimchi from entering the country and establish a continuous inspection system for imported kimchi, including pre-import inspection orders, detailed inspections at customs clearance, and sampling inspections during distribution, to ensure safe kimchi is imported and distributed, making every effort to achieve this."