Supreme Court inflexible on jail terms for Taiwan plasticizer couple
Staff Reporter 2012-12-29 13:13
Yu Shen Chemical owner Lai Chun-chieh was ruled to have been supplying harmful additives to food producers since 1996. (File photo/Hung Bi-chen)
Taiwan's Supreme Court on Dec. 27 upheld the high court's verdict on Yu Shen Chemical Co owner Lai Chun-chieh and his wife Chien Ling-yuan. Lai will be jailed for 15 years and Chien will serve 12 years for their role in the plasticizer food safety crisis that shocked the country last year and undermined the reputation of Taiwan-made food products and beverages abroad.
Judges said in the verdict that Lai and Chien had been producing and selling potentially harmful food additives to food suppliers since 1996. "Their crimes jeopardized public health, caused panic, had an impact on social order and harmed the nation's international image," the verdict said.
In addition to the jail sentences, the couple will have to pay a total of NT$24 million (US$800,000) in fines.
The plasticizer scandal came to light in May last year, when a local magazine reported that Yu Shen had been replacing palm oil with the chemical DEHP in a widely used emulsifying agent that it supplied to food producers, leading to a major crisis and public panic as item after item produced by reputable brands was pulled from shelves.
As Taiwan has long prided itself on food quality and safety compared to the frequent toxic food scandals in China, the case revealed a worrying complacency and showed how the actions of just two people could compromise the country's entire food industry.
Though plasticizers like the DEHP Yu Shen used in its food additives are usually flushed out of the body within a short time, long-term exposure can pose a number of problems to human health, such as affecting the immune system and male reproductive function, as well as inducing premature puberty in girls.
