Taiwan News
Date: 2016-06-15
By: Matthew Strong, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – In the first compensation verdict following a string of food safety scandals,

Kaohsiung judge Shih Po-hung

Ting Hsin International affiliate Cheng I Food Company was sentenced to pay NT$9.36 million (US$288,800) with interest Wednesday.
The Kaohsiung District Court ruled that the cooking oil manufacturer had harmed the health of 5,314 teachers and pupils in a civil case brought by the central government’s Consumer Protection Committee on behalf of 96 schools. Appeals were still possible against the verdict, which came in far lower than demanded by the committee..

The issue found its origin in a series of major adulterated oil scandals which broke in 2014. Several producers, including Ting Hsin affiliates, were accused of having used low-quality products, sometimes even waste oil and oil reserved for industrial oil, to adulterate cooking oil destined for human consumption.

The court said Wednesday that though no evidence had been provided that teachers or pupils suffered health problems as a result of consuming Cheng I oil products, it was still clear that the company had damaged the “corporeal and health rights” of the consumers.     [FULL  STORY]