Police Raid Cirebon Warehouse Allegedly Producing Formaldehyde-Tainted Noodles
Jakarta. Cirebon Police raided a West Java warehouse allegedly producing noodles tainted with formaldehyde on Friday.
The owner of the warehouse, who has been identified as Dede, along with eight employees were arrested during the raid.
Police swooped on the factory after health authorities and the Cirebon Public Order Agency (Satpol PP) found formalin-tainted noodles being sold at a shop in Harjamukti market in the port city.
“When we tested the noodle, it turned purple which means that it contained formalin,” Cirebon Police spokesman Eko told Tempo.co.
Formalin is a form of formaldehyde, a known carcinogen. The substance is often illegally used as a preservative in food in Indonesia.
When authorities investigated the source of the noodles, they were led to the warehouse, which police said has been producing formalin-tainted noodles since 2000.
Five jerry cans of formalin, as well as borax — a colourless, salt-like substance that is commonly used to make fertilisers and pesticides — were confiscated.
According to police, the warehouse had the capacity to produce up to two tons of noodles a day, which were sold in markets in Cirebon and Tegal in Central Java.
Dede has been charged under the 2012 Food Law.
Last month rice samples taken at a market in Bekasi sparked a nation-wide food scare as they were believed to contain plastic compounds.
Subsequent tests by Indonesia’s Food and Drug Monitoring Agency (BPOM) revealed the rice to be free from any toxic compounds however.
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