Taipei, Oct. 12 (CNA) The Taipei City Government will begin taking applications on Monday for lawsuits against major food producer Ting Hsin International Group to help consumers seek compensation for being victims in Taiwan's latest edible oil scandal.

Ting Hsin, which is involved in the manufacturing and selling of "fake oil," has told consumers that it can refund the cost of its food products sold in stores, such as at Ting Hsin's supermarket chain, Matsusei Supermarket, according to the Department of Legal Affairs of the Taipei City Government.

For those who have used Ting Hsin food items made from the adulterated oil, however, the company has not yet offered "a single word about further compensatory measures for consumers," the department said.

The department also urged Ting Hsin to take social responsibility and respond to consumers' expectations by providing compensation based on article 51 of the Consumer Protection Law.

Article 51 states that during litigation brought in accordance with the Consumer Protection Law, the required consumer may claim for punitive damages up to three times the amount of actual damages as a result of injuries caused by a willful act of misconduct by business operators.

If such injuries are caused by negligence, however, a punitive damage of up to double the amount of the actual damages may be claimed, according to the law.

Ting Hsin, one of Taiwan's best-known food companies, is facing an unprecedented crisis over repeated problems with cooking oils that have seriously tarnished its image and exerted heavy pressure on its food business.

Already hurt by two oil scandals over the past 11 months, Ting Hsin absorbed another blow last week when subsidiary Cheng I Food Co. was found to have sold 68 lard-based edible oils containing animal feed oil not meant for human consumption.

By Sunday afternoon, the Food and Drugs Administration's regional center for northern Taiwan said the number of questionable items had increased to 222, all of which will be ordered taken off shelf by midnight Sunday.

Feng Ruenn-lan, director of the regional center, said she believed afftected items will increase as officials step up their checks on products made from Cheng I Food Co.'s questionable oils.

Wei Chuan Foods Corp., a subsidiary of Ting Hsin, had to recall several oil products in September after finding that they had been partly made from oil recycled from kitchen waste or extracted from industrial grease.

In November 2013, some edible oil products marketed as "pure" by Wei Chuan were found to have been adulterated with low-cost oils. 

文章來源: http://focustaiwan.tw/news/asoc/201410120013.aspx