hankyoreh

It was shocking enough that a mouse head was found in a bag of shrimp-flavored snacks known as “Saeukkang” and the blade of a knife was discovered in a can of tuna. However, now, corn flower and instant boiled rice have been found to have been contaminated by mold. Citizens are naturally becoming enraged at the fact that they can’t trust the nation’s food products.

Last year, a disturbance arose when green tea, the nation’s representative “well-being” product, was found to contain agricultural chemicals. In 2006, a dairy industry giant recalled all of its products after one of them was found to contain Enterobacter sakazakii, which is known to be the cause of an infection with high infant fatality rates. Such health and safety accidents have occurred repeatedly because food manufacturers have little regard for the health and safety of consumers and the national agency in charge of managing and supervising the food industry hasn’t changed its lukewarm attitude toward the issue.

Nongshim Co., the producer of “Saeukkang,” did not take action for a month, even though the giant food company knew that the suspicious substance, presumed to be a part of a rodent, was found in the snack Koreans have loved for the past few decades. Nongshim attempted to put a lid on the matter by offering three boxes of instant noodles and 500,000 won in compensation to the citizen who informed the company of the problem. When a consumer informed Dongwon F&B that a can of tuna contained a knife blade, the company also tried to mitigate the situation by giving the citizen a set of its products. These businesses tried to settle the cases quickly, neglecting their responsibility to the nation’s health. Considering the reactions of these large conglomerates, it is worrisome to think about how other companies will respond when similar problems arise.

In the case of Nongshim, in particular, consumers have continued to complain about the poor quality of its products since the company began manufacturing its goods in China as a way to reduce costs. It has been said that a large number of cases involving questionable foods produced by Nongshim have been reported to the Consumers Union of Korea. However, the company neither looked into the cause of such incidents, nor took due measures to prevent future occurrences. The Korea Food and Drug Administration has neglected its duty to ensure food safety and the public’s health.

In advanced countries, such as the United States and Japan, it would be unimaginable for a company to attempt to quell problems with contaminated food by offering free products to the people who filed complaints against them. In those nations, companies whose products are found to contain harmful or dangerous substances are governed by strict laws and sometimes collapse because they lose consumer confidence. Therefore, businesses in advanced nations must ensure food safety and the quality of their products. They must also be proactive in dealing with situations when problems arise. South Korea food companies should have similar standards for responsibility and be equipped with crisis management systems.

The nation’s public health authorities should strengthen their management and supervisory functions and create a system under which food makers are required to inform them about consumer complaints. Concerned institutions and organizations should help to protect consumer rights by monitoring these companies so that companies trying to silence consumer complaints about potentially dangerous or substandard food products can’t get a toehold in the industry.

Please direct questions or comments to [englishhani@hani.co.kr]