[UPDATED] Mi Sedaap safe to eat, company confirms

KUALA LUMPUR – Mi Sedaap instant noodles are safe for consumption and free of carcinogenic compound ethylene oxide, said parent company Gentle Supreme Sdn Bhd following a statement by the Health Ministry last month.

The company also said it abides by all regulatory requirements in Malaysia and Indonesia, and there are no “active orders by the ministry to recall Mi Sedaap noodle products in the market”.

“Mi Sedaap products do not contain pesticide residue. Together with our manufacturers, we have placed strict food safety and quality controls at our Mi Sedaap factories, including thorough quality checks at each stage of our raw material sourcing and manufacturing process which comply with international food safety standards.

“This includes comprehensive testing to ensure that every packet of Mi Sedaap noodles complies with all applicable food safety laws, as well as our high standards of quality and safety before they reach our consumers,” said Gentle Supreme regulatory affairs manager Eliza Yanti in a statement today. 

“The recent statement issued on 24th April 2023 by Taipei’s Health Department on instant noodles products found to be carcinogenic is not related to Mi Sedaap.”

In addition, Eliza said the company “and/or our manufacturers have obtained numerous certifications/approvals”, such as:

- halal certificates from Jakim (Malaysian Islamic Development Department)
- permission from the Indonesian Food and Drug Agency
- Good Manufacturing Practice certification by the Indonesian Food and Drug Agency
- ISO 22000 Certification for International Standard of Food Safety Management 
- ISO 9001 Certification for International Standard of Quality Management 
- halal certificate from Indonesian Ulama Council 
- halal certification from Indonesian Halal Product Assurance Body

On April 24, the department said it found that a batch of Ah Lai White Curry Noodles from Malaysia and a batch of Indomie: Special Chicken Flavour noodles from Indonesia both contained ethylene oxide.

However, on April 26, Malaysia’s Health Director-General Datuk Dr Muhammad Radzi Abu Hassan said ethylene oxide was detected from tests done on 11 samples of Mi Sedaap from 36 products since last year to date.

“It was found that 11 samples of Mi Sedaap products contain ethylene oxide and enforcement action will be taken. This includes compounds, court action and also product recall,” he said in a statement.

In October last year, the Singapore Food Agency (SFA) extended the recall of two Mie Sedaap products from Indonesia due to the presence of ethylene oxide.

The agency said it has directed Arklife Distributors Pte Ltd to recall Mie Sedaap’s soto- and curry-flavoured instant noodles.

Prior to that, SFA directed Sheng Sheng F&B Industries Pte Ltd to recall Mie Sedaap’s Korean Spicy Soup and Korean Spicy Chicken instant noodles due to the presence of the carcinogenic substance.

These products however were not sold in Malaysia, according to a statement issued by the Malaysian Health Ministry following SFA’s product recall. – The Vibes, May 5, 2023