Ministry of Food and Drug Safety “detected in storage warehouse and take recall measures… Stop the distribution of the market.”
While a carcinogen called ‘fungal toxin’ was detected in coffee beans imported by the famous coffee franchise Megacoffee, it was reported that it was not distributed in the market.
According to the industry on the 22nd, An House, which operates Mega Coffee, was requested by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety to return all imported Ethiopian coffee beans on the 1st. This is because ochratoxin A, called mycotoxin, was detected in excess in the beans.
Ochratoxin A is a fungal toxin generated in stored grains, etc., and causes damage to the kidneys and liver without being destroyed by general heating and cooking processes. It is a carcinogen defined by the World Health Organization (WHO).
Megacoffee announced on the 21st that imported coffee beans with carcinogens were filtered out at the customs clearance stage and were not distributed on the market.
It is known that all the beans in question have been returned. Megacoffee said that it is considering suspending business with the coffee bean company that it has been dealing with for about a year, and that there is no problem with the coffee beans currently being used in the store.
The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety also said, “For imported coffee beans that went through customs only with documents, we visited the storage warehouses of the companies and conducted inspections, and ochratoxin A was detected, and through measures, they were prevented from being distributed in the market.”
Previously, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety said that ochratoxin A was detected in excess in Ethiopian coffee beans imported by Blesbin, a coffee importer and processing company in Seongnam, and promptly recalled products on the market.
Lotte Confectionery was also asked to return all of the beans after the same type of toxin was detected in beans used for processed coffee products. Lotte Confectionery also emphasized that it was not distributed on the market, saying, “A problem was discovered in the customs clearance process and was immediately discarded.”
Reporter Lee Bo-hee