114 Hospitalized Patients... 680 Outpatients and Others
Cases of Women in Their 70s Reported in Taiwan as Well
The number of deaths due to side effects from red yeast rice (Hongguk) health supplements produced by Japan's Kobayashi Pharmaceutical has risen to five, with the number of hospitalized patients reaching 114, indicating that the damage is growing.
On the 29th, NHK and Kyodo News reported that Kobayashi Pharmaceutical held a press conference and announced that the number of deaths among those who consumed their problematic product had increased to five as of the previous day, and the number of hospitalized patients had risen to 114. All the deceased were elderly people in their 70s to 90s. Additionally, about 680 consumers are currently receiving hospital treatment or wish to do so. Akihiro Kobayashi (小林章浩), the company president, said, "We deeply apologize for causing a serious social problem."
At the press conference, the company stated regarding the ingredients of the problematic product, "There is a possibility that it was produced by mold, but this has not been clearly clarified." In this regard, Kyodo News reported that among the substances analyzed after the incident, puberulic acid has toxicity and further verification is underway, but its effects on the kidneys remain unclear.
Red yeast rice is made by fermenting rice or other grains with a type of red yeast mold, turning it red. It has long been widely used as a food coloring agent. Recently in Japan, it has been reported that a component called lovastatin contained in red yeast rice helps break down cholesterol, leading to the release of many health supplements using red yeast rice. However, despite these benefits, the red yeast mold also produces citrinin, a mold toxin, which is known to pose a risk of causing kidney disease.
Cases of damage have also been reported in Taiwan. A woman in her 70s living in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, who had been consuming health supplements manufactured by a Taiwanese company using red yeast rice raw materials from Kobayashi Pharmaceutical for several years, was diagnosed with acute renal failure in March last year.
As the number of damage cases continues to increase, the Japanese government and local authorities are taking action. The Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare has set up a dedicated call center to provide telephone consultations, and Osaka City has issued a compulsory recall order based on the Food Sanitation Act to Kobayashi Pharmaceutical, which is conducting voluntary recalls of three products. Kobayashi Pharmaceutical started as a partnership company founded in 1886 and is now listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. It manufactures pharmaceuticals and hygiene goods, reporting sales of 173.4 billion yen (approximately 1.5 trillion KRW) and operating profit of 25.7 billion yen (approximately 22.88 billion KRW) last year.
MFDS: "No cases of problematic products imported domestically"
Meanwhile, on the 31st, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) urged consumers to carefully check detailed information on the MFDS-operated information site when purchasing foods through overseas direct purchase, as concerns about red yeast rice-containing health supplements have grown domestically. The MFDS stated that as the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare adds to the list of products voluntarily recalled using Kobayashi Pharmaceutical's red yeast rice raw materials daily, this list is immediately updated on the MFDS 'Food Safety Korea' website. This list can be found in the 'Hazard & Prevention' section under 'Overseas Direct Purchase Information -> Overseas Direct Purchase Food Safety Information' and 'Overseas Direct Purchase Food Properly -> Safety Information' on the Food Safety Korea homepage.
The Japanese government announced that as of 9:30 p.m. on the 29th, it is recalling 182 products from 68 companies that use Kobayashi Pharmaceutical's red yeast rice raw materials. The MFDS confirmed that none of these products have been imported into Korea and will continue to monitor whether additional products are brought into the country.
Furthermore, for the five health functional food products from Kobayashi Pharmaceutical subject to the forced recall order in Japan, the MFDS has worked with the Korea Customs Service to block them during import customs clearance. For other products voluntarily recalled in Japan due to the use of Kobayashi Pharmaceutical's red yeast rice raw materials, customs inspections have been strengthened, and cooperation with domestic platform companies has been requested to prevent sales postings. Additionally, the MFDS has required importers to prove that imported foods using red yeast rice raw materials from Japan do not contain raw materials manufactured by Kobayashi Pharmaceutical.
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