MFDS Conducts Sampling Inspection of High-Consumption Spring Herbs Such as Naengi and Dallae

Spring wild greens stock photo. [Photo by Asia Economy DB]

The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety announced on the 15th that it will conduct collection and inspection of high-consumption spring greens nationwide from the 20th to the 24th in cooperation with local governments for proactive safety management of spring greens.

The inspection targets a total of 340 cases, including spring greens (spring cabbage, shepherd's purse, wild chives, mugwort, stonecrop, aster scaber, aralia sprout, butterbur, water parsley, sowthistle, spinach) distributed and sold at large supermarkets and agricultural wholesale markets, as well as agricultural products with non-compliance records in the past three years. The inspection items include residual pesticides and heavy metals.

The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety plans to promptly recall and dispose of agricultural products judged to be non-compliant based on inspection results and disclose related information on the Food Safety Korea website. Last year, 512 cases of high-consumption agricultural products in spring were collected and inspected, and actions were taken on 16 cases that exceeded the allowable limits for residual pesticides.

In addition, the Ministry warned that accidents sometimes occur when poisonous plants are mistaken for spring greens during the spring season and urged caution to avoid individuals arbitrarily harvesting and consuming wild plants without sufficient prior knowledge.

Wild chives and sowthistle, which are consumed without heating, should be thoroughly washed under running water to remove residual pesticides, and if abnormal symptoms such as paralysis or abdominal pain occur after consuming spring greens, one should visit the nearest hospital.