Taisugar's Latest Report: 'Oil Never Entered Facility, So No Notification Required' – Shih: Not Legally Required

An investigation by prosecutors and regulatory authorities found that Taisugar had discovered as early as May this year that crude oil supplied by Chung Lian Oils exceeded benzo(a)pyrene limits, yet failed to notify the competent authority. Minister of Health and Welfare Shih Chong-liang stated today (5th) during legislative questioning that the current Food Safety and Sanitation Act only mandates reporting when safety standards for edible oils are exceeded, and these standards do not extend to raw materials or intermediate semi-finished products such as degummed crude oil. Since no safety standard exists for crude oil, there is no legal obligation to report.

Taisugar emphasized in its report submitted to the legislature that the non-compliant crude oil was never owned by Taisugar nor transported into its facility. Under Article 7, Paragraph 5 of the Food Safety Act, food businesses must immediately halt manufacturing, processing, sales, and initiate recalls while notifying local authorities upon discovering products with potential health and safety risks. However, Taisugar argued that the soybean crude oil supplied by Chung Lian Oils, commissioned by Formosa, was a raw material for manufacturing soybean salad oil and not a 'product' per se. Furthermore, since Taisugar rejected the shipment, there was no applicability of halting manufacturing, processing, sales, or recalls, and thus no obligation under Article 7, Paragraph 5 to report.

Prior to legislative questioning, Minister Shih addressed media inquiries regarding public criticism over whether the Food Safety Act contains gray areas, given that Taisugar detected超标 crude oil but was not required to report. Shih acknowledged public expectations: 'Regarding food safety, I understand that the public desires the highest standards, and we all hope for collective vigilance—detect and report. This expectation is understandable.' However, he stressed, 'Administrative agencies must act according to law. Under the current Food Safety Act, reporting obligations apply only to items with established safety standards. Since such standards do not exist for raw materials or intermediate semi-finished products like degummed crude oil, there is no legal requirement to report.'