TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Food and Drug Administration will investigate pharmaceutical company Adimmune after it was reported that lab mice contaminated one of its vaccine production sites.

Mirror Media reported on Wednesday that an Adimmune employee said 120 lab mice were kept in the company’s vaccine laboratories, contaminating them, per CNA. The employee claimed the company’s supervisors did not report or disinfect the area after the incident.

In response to the report, Adimmune said lab mice were kept in its R&D laboratory for two days in July during Typhoon Gaemi. It said they were not kept in areas where pharmaceuticals were made, which adhered to government regulations.

Adimmune acknowledged reports that mice were seen at the entrance of one of its buildings. It said this occurred because a supplier failed to deliver animals used for lab experiments at the agreed-upon time, instead placing them in an R&D building where they were discovered by employees arriving for work.

Adimmune said it discussed this with the supplier and put measures in place to ensure it does not happen again. It said it also created an after-hours delivery procedure to deal with similar events.

Speaking about the reports outside the legislature, Health Minister Chiu Tai-yuan (邱泰源) said the FDA has been asked to inspect Adimmune’s premises as soon as possible. He said if inspectors find crimes under the Pharmaceutical Affairs Act or other relevant regulations, Adimmune would be fined between NT$30,000 (US$923) and NT$2 million.

Chiu said the public need not worry about vaccine safety. He said all vaccines require 11 “vigorous inspections” before they are made publicly available.

Adimmune has produced vaccines for enterovirus and influenza approved for sale in multiple Asian countries, according to its website. It has also worked with Japanese and European companies on research and marketing.