New Taipei City random inspection: Convenience store rice balls contain excessive E. coli

In May, the New Taipei City Government Health Bureau sampled 29 rice products including sushi, rice balls, fried rice, and rice burgers in its jurisdiction. The inspection results found that 7-ELEVEN's "Royal Rice Ball Bacon Egg Salad" exceeded the standard for E. coli. The business was immediately asked to make improvements within a time limit. If the re-inspection still does not meet the regulations, it will be fined NT$30,000 to NT$150,000 in violation of Article 10 of the Food Sanitation Management Act.

The New Taipei City Health Bureau sampled 7-ELEVEN's "Royal Rice Ball Bacon Egg Salad" and found that the E. coli group exceeded the standard. The business was immediately asked to make improvements within a specified period of time. (Photo courtesy of New Taipei City Health Bureau)

Lin Guanzhen, chief of the Food and Drug Administration Department of the Health Bureau, pointed out that this time the random inspection was conducted on rice products sold in restaurants, convenience stores, schools, supermarkets, shopping malls and vendors. Among them, E. coli should be negative; the most accurate number of E. coli groups per gram must be below 1000 MPN/g, but the test found that the E. coli group of 7-ELEVEN's "Royal Rice Ball Bacon Egg Salad" was greater than 1100 MPN/g. The manufacturer is the Taipei plant of Uni-President Musashino Co., Ltd.

E. coli and E. coli groups are often used as important indicators to monitor whether food is contaminated or whether there are any hygienic deficiencies in the production process. If the detected content exceeds the standard, it means that the food may be contaminated during the production process due to personnel hygiene, negligence, ingredients, utensils or packaging process. Improper storage at room temperature is more likely to promote the reproduction of microorganisms.

The Department of Health also calls on the public to choose stores with clean and hygienic sales venues when selecting food, and to eat it as soon as possible after purchase. Any uneaten food should be refrigerated. The refrigerator temperature should be below 7°C to ensure the freshness and safety of the food. Business operators must pay attention to the management of water sources and food quality, storage temperature, production process, environmental hygiene (knives, drill boards, rags), etc. to ensure the hygiene of the products and prevent consumers from ingesting germs in the hot summer.