Tokyo (VNA) – The benzoic acid additivethat Japanese authorities discovered in Chinsu-branded chilli sauce importedfrom Vietnam is being used in some food in Japan, according to Vietnamese TradeCounselor in Japan Ta Duc Minh.

He revealed the information tocorrespondents from Vietnam News Agency in Tokyoon April 9 relating to the recent recall of Vietnamese chilli sauce in Japan.

The trade counsellorsaid that in Japan, additives such as benzoic acid and sodium benzoate are usedwith a standard content of 2.5 g per kg. The content of benzoic acid inmargarine is 1 g per kg; syrup and soy sauce, 0.6 g per kg; and in otherconfectionery products 1 g per kg.

According to Minh, Japanese authorities onlyconfirmed that benzoic acid additive cannot be used in chilli sauce in thecountry.

Earlier on March 8, the Bureau of Social Welfareand Public Health of Tokyo Metropolitan Government informed that the foodsupervisors of Shinjuku City Public Health Centre had recalled all bottles ofChinsu chilli sauce at a sale point in the city after detecting that theproduct is labelled without providing additives information, violating Japan’slaws on food hygiene and labelling.

The chilli sauce bottles in question wereimported from Vietnam on December 7, 2018. They were sold by ISC Industrial Co.,Ltd., and imported by an Osaka-based company Javis. 

Afterwards, the Osaka City Public Health Centreopened an investigation, which showed that the product contains benzoic acidand sorbic acid.

Minh said the product violated Clause 2, Article11 of the law on food hygiene in Japan that does not allow the use of benzoicadditives in chilli sauce, and infringed on the provisions of the law on food labelling.As a result, the director of Osaka’s health department ordered the importer torecall all related items. 

However, in the test results, the maximum amount of benzoic acid in bottles ofChinsu chilli imported into Japan is 0.45 gram per kg. The www.city.osaka.lg.jgsite confirmed that a 50kg person can eat 0.56kg chilli sauce (about 0.22 gramBenzoic Acid) every day throughout his life without health being affected.

After Japanese authorities decided to recallChinsu chilli sauce, the product was still sold on some reputable e-commercesites in Japan, such as Yahoo! Shopping Japan, amazon.jp, and buyee.jp.

Learning from this lesson, the Vietnam TradeOffice in Japan advised businesses to be careful and find out more informationabout Japanese import regulations.

Minh said that before exporting any product,businesses should exchange with their partners and ask them to provideinformation related to products such as the consumer market and the legalregulations of Japan.

Food exporters must pay special attention tothis issue as Japan has high standards for food safety and hygiene, hestressed. –VNA