TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Food and Drug Administration announced Tuesday that five imported products failed recent border inspections.

The affected items include Vietnamese asparagus, Malaysian mixed spices, and two batches of dried jackfruit and longan from Thailand, all of which were found to contain excessive pesticide residues or bleaching agents. A batch of squid from Hokkaido, Japan, was flagged for containing excessive levels of the heavy metal cadmium, per CNA.

All non-compliant products have been returned or destroyed. The importer responsible for the two failed Thai products will face stricter future inspections.

The intercepted squid batch, weighing 0.29 kg, contained 2 mg/kg of cadmium. This surpasses Taiwan’s regulatory limit of 1 mg/kg for cephalopods, excluding internal organs.

Chronic cadmium buildup in the body can cause kidney damage, bone softening, anemia, hindered bone and nerve development in children, and raises the risk of lung cancer.

FDA Deputy Director Lin Chin-fu (林金富) said that over the past six months, 243 batches of squid from the same origin and product category have been inspected, with only two failing. Given the low failure rate, the general inspection policy will remain unchanged.

The importer of the failed squid batch has submitted three batches for inspection in the past six months, with only one failing. They will now undergo stricter inspections.

Suppliers explained that bleaching agents are commonly added to meet market demand. These agents help prevent food from browning, maintaining its color and enhancing its visual appeal.