Salad Oil Benzo[a]pyrene Levels Unusually High; Expert Suggests Link to Imported Soybeans

(Central News Agency Reporter Shen Pei-yao, Taipei, July 3) Regarding the case of carcinogenic substance "benzo[a]pyrene" exceeding the limit in raw materials for salad oil from Chung Lien Oil Co., the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) provided an update today. Experts pointed out that this situation is quite rare for refined salad oil, and one possibility is that it is related to the quality of imported soybeans. However, it is also not ruled out that the manufacturing process control was not sufficiently完善.

On July 1, the Ministry of Health and Welfare's Food and Drug Administration received a report from Chung Lien Oil Co., Ltd. that a batch of soybean salad oil raw material, approximately 1,300 metric tons, used by companies such as Fwusow Industry, Formosa Oilseed Processing, and President Enterprise, was found to have carcinogenic substance "benzo[a]pyrene" levels exceeding the regulatory limit.

This case affects 18 products and 30 batches. The FDA held a press conference in the evening to explain the recall and disposal of affected oil products, stating that the deadline for removal from shelves was 12:00 PM today. Currently, 6 items have been accounted for, with a total of 17.422 metric tons recovered.

Professor Su Nan-wei from the Department of Agricultural Chemistry and Graduate Institute at National Taiwan University stated at the meeting that cases of benzo[a]pyrene exceeding the limit are actually very rare. From the perspective of oil refining, even if the benzo[a]pyrene content in crude oil (raw oil) is high, it should theoretically be reducible after complete refining processes such as degumming, deacidification, decolorization, and deodorization.

However, domestic soybeans are almost entirely imported. Su Nan-wei frankly stated that it is difficult for the country to control how the soybeans are dried after harvesting in their country of origin, and whether high temperatures have produced benzo[a]pyrene. Domestic efforts can only rely on import inspection procedures for quality control and then reduce pollutants through subsequent refining processes.

Furthermore, Su Nan-wei mentioned that benzo[a]pyrene is not generated out of thin air but forms in abnormal high-temperature environments of around 300 degrees Celsius or higher. The sources that the public encounters in daily life may not be cooking oil, but rather cooking fumes, barbecues, or smoke generated by other combustion.

FDA Director-General Chiang Chih-kang pointed out that the benzo[a]pyrene levels in oils regularly tested in the country are always safe, and there have been no non-compliant cases in the past. According to the inspection project and sampling results for edible oil manufacturers from 2022 to 2025, a total of 275 oil samples were tested for benzo[a]pyrene, all of which were compliant. This instance was also due to the company's proactive reporting that prompted the FDA to quickly clarify the situation.

He revealed that Chung Lien's first self-inspection was on April 13, and the result was compliant. However, on June 11, downstream company Nan Chiao reported non-compliance after testing. Therefore, on June 25, they investigated retained samples, testing twice that day, yielding 4.68 μg/kg and 8.1 μg/kg respectively, both exceeding the standard of 2 μg/kg. This could be related to the location of continuous process sampling. As for why the results changed from compliant to non-compliant, it still awaits the company's complete report for clarification.

Regarding public doubts that other related carcinogenic substances were also found to exceed the standard in this soybean salad oil, and that new standards should be established, Chiang Chih-kang explained that this is a "misunderstanding." The current standard already has a limit for the total content of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and the other three substances are included within it.

According to the "Guideline for Reducing Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Food," the monitoring indicator values for four PAHs, namely benzo[a]pyrene, benz[a]anthracene, benzo[b]fluoranthene, and chrysene, are 10.0 μg/kg. Chiang Chih-kang pointed out that because benzo[a]pyrene poses a greater hazard, it was specifically selected for prioritized regulation in edible oils with a limit of 2.0 μg/kg.

Professor Chiu Hui-wen from the Graduate Institute of Clinical Medicine at Taipei Medical University reminded that although benzo[a]pyrene has been classified as a Group 1 carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), indicating sufficient evidence of carcinogenicity, the risk of cancer is still related to the dose, duration, and cumulative exposure. It does not mean that a single consumption will necessarily cause health harm. Therefore, the public need not be overly anxious about this incident; the focus should remain on reducing long-term exposure risks. (Editor: Yang Sheng-ru) 1150703

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