Julie's biscuits banned
EVERY day since last Saturday, trucks packed with cartons of
recalled stock have been rolling up at a 10,000 sq ft warehouse in
Tuas already nearly filled to the brim.
Mr Simon Lim, owner of Li Ann Foodstuff, is trying to be
optimistic, but it is difficult.
As the sole importer of well-known Malaysian biscuit brand
Julie's, the company is now facing a loss of up to half a million
dollars, after the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA)
announced last Friday that 12 Julie's confectionery items were
contaminated with melamine.
As a precaution, the food safety authority immediately banned
all Julie's products.
The brand makes up nearly 80 per cent of Li Ann's range.
'It's painful. After all, the brand's been in Singapore for so
many years. We apologise to all our affected customers,' Mr Lim,
65, told The Straits Times.
All the products, even those that are not contaminated, will be
gradually destroyed over the next few weeks. Mr Lim was unable to
give an estimate of the total volume, but the 10,000 sq ft
warehouse is holding just half of the recalled stock, and he needs
more space fast.
Along with five other biscuit products from Malaysia, the 12
affected Julie's products form the first batch of non-China goods
found tainted with melamine in Singapore since the worldwide food
scandal started last month.
While the furore previously centred on melamine-tainted milk, it
appears that the potentially harmful chemical has now worked its
way into other substances.
The AVA said that the contamination in the Malaysian biscuits
seems to have stemmed from tainted ammonium bicarbonate, which is
used as a raising agent in confectionery.
According to Li Ann, nearly 90 per cent of Malaysian biscuit
manufacturers use this raising agent, sometimes sourced from China,
as an ingredient.
Julie's Malaysian manufacturer Perfect Food is now rushing out
new batches made with leavening agents from Germany and Japan, and
the new products may be available as soon as in five weeks'
time.
The AVA confirmed it would allow the import of Julie's biscuits
once it is sure they are safe.
Mr Lim acknowledged that customers might turn to other brands in
the meantime, but said he was confident they would return to
Julie's.
'We're not worried. We've been on the market for so long and our
products are delicious,' he said.
Mr Lim started importing the biscuits in 1980 under their former
name PFI. In 1987, it was rebranded as Julie's.
Since the AVA's latest announcement, manufacturers and importers
have been scrambling to check whether their products contain
leavening agents from China.
Kraft Foods said it used ammonium bicarbonate from many
countries, including China, but its tests on the ingredient have
proved it is clean.
Meanwhile, Yamakawa Trading, which brings in popular Japanese
food brands such as Morinaga, said it had certified with its
suppliers that all their ingredients are from Japan.
Other manufacturers, like Mars, which makes products such as
Snickers, Mars and M&Ms, have confirmed that they do not use
any raising agents at all. -- ST
