Anxiety Grows Over Chinese Cabbage... Naju City Inspects Kimchi Ingredients and Origin Labeling

Inspection of Kimchi Manufacturing and Processing Businesses in the City
"None of the Businesses Use Chinese Cabbage"
Request for Stronger Enforcement of Origin Labeling at Restaurants

As concerns over food safety spread due to the controversy surrounding the use of formaldehyde in Chinese cabbage, the city of Naju has begun proactively inspecting ingredient usage at kimchi manufacturing businesses within its jurisdiction.

On August 29, Naju City in the Gwangju-Jeonnam Metropolitan Special City announced that it would strengthen food safety management for kimchi manufacturing and processing establishments, as well as restaurants, in order to address recent concerns among citizens about Chinese cabbage and cabbage kimchi imported from China.

Aerial View of Naju City Hall

Previously, on August 26, Naju City inspected local kimchi food manufacturing and processing businesses to check how cabbage ingredients were being used. The inspection confirmed that none of the businesses subject to the evaluation used Chinese cabbage.

Nevertheless, the city has also requested that the National Agricultural Products Quality Management Service strengthen guidance and enforcement to ensure that restaurants and other businesses accurately label the origin of Chinese cabbage and cabbage kimchi.

Going forward, the city plans to further strengthen origin labeling and food safety management through joint inspections with relevant agencies. In addition, guidance and promotions targeting general restaurants will be carried out in parallel. Utilizing various channels such as Food Hygiene Informer, the city will provide information related to Chinese kimchi and food safety regulations, and instruct business owners to thoroughly check ingredient and origin labeling. In order to alleviate consumer concerns, businesses will also be advised to refrain from using Chinese kimchi.

Byungtae Yoon, Mayor of Naju, stated, "With the recent reports on Chinese cabbage, public interest and concern regarding food safety have grown. We will provide accurate information and carry out thorough on-site inspections to prevent the spread of unconfirmed anxieties."

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety recently announced that it tested eight batches of imported Chinese cabbage for formaldehyde, and no traces were detected in any of them.

The Ministry added that it conducts formaldehyde testing at the customs clearance stage for every import of Chinese cabbage, as well as for cabbage kimchi and salted cabbage by manufacturer. It also plans to continue collecting and testing Chinese cabbage, cabbage kimchi, and salted cabbage currently distributed in Korea, and will release the results publicly.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.