BUTTERWORTH – A soy sauce factory in Bagan Ajam has been using recycled bottles to pack their products in their bid to cut production costs.
This was discovered by the Penang Health Department in an operation conducted by its Food Safety and Quality Division on the factory, which has been operating for almost 50 years.
Food Safety and Quality Division health officer Mohd Wazir Khalid said they found empty bottles which were not cleansed in accordance to specifications.
“The work of cleaning the bottles is done manually, they are just washed using hands and regular soap and then placed in areas that can cause contamination,” he told a press conference after the operation today.
Additionally, Wazir said his team also discovered various other offences at the factory, including the use of damaged equipment and impurities in the soybean marinating place.
“This factory uses fiberglass that is almost 20 years old. Whereas, it should be used no more than 10 years because we are worried it may contaminate food.
“Besides, there are also twigs, leaves and bird feathers in the soybean marinating tank.”
In a separate raid on a bread factory at Bagan Ajam, the state health department found rat droppings in a bread tray storage area.
“We also found that the bread tray used was dirty, that is, there was a layer of oil on the multi-tiered tray trolley, causing the oil to drip on the raw bread at the bottom, causing food contamination,” he said.
In this regard, Wazir said his team issued a closure order for the two factories and issued nine compounds amounting to RM9,000.
“A two-week closure action was also taken under Section 11 of the Food Act 1983 to enable both premises to carry out cleaning as prescribed,” he said. – The Vibes, November 11, 2021
