China increases list of tainted imports from Taiwan

BEIJING—China has greatly increased the number of banned imported products from Taiwan after authorities in Taipei warned they were tainted with a chemical used in plastics, state media said Saturday.

Beijing has suspended imports of 812 products including beverages, food and additives — up from the 22 announced on Wednesday, the official Xinhua news agency said, citing the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine.

The Philippines, Hong Kong and South Korea have also limited imports or sales of foodstuffs from the export-dependent island after the alarm was raised over the chemical DEHP, which can cause hormone malfunctions in children.

Beijing halted imports of Taiwan-made sports drinks, fruit juices and jams that Taipei had said could contain excessive DEHP, and published a list of 245 companies from the island whose products were banned.

It would add to the list in due course, China’s quality watchdog said previously.

Taiwan this week began an inspection drive to ensure sports drinks, juices and three more product categories were not tainted with DEHP or five other chemicals, after first raising the alarm on May 24 with a major recall.

It said then it was recalling more than 460,000 bottles of sports drinks and juice after some locally manufactured drinks were found to contain the plasticizer, sparking its worst food scare in decades.

Authorities have arrested the owner of a company that used DEHP rather than more expensive palm oil in products supplied to dozens of local drinks makers.

He faces up to six months in jail.