A Taiwanese actor criticised Taiwan Railway Corporation (TRC) after finding what appeared to be a cockroach inside a pork chop bento purchased at Zuoying High-Speed Rail Station.
The actor shared the experience on his Threads account on Sunday (Aug 30), saying the incident occurred when he was travelling from Zuoying Station to Taichung.
“I vomited, it’s really disgusting,” he wrote.
The actor said he bought the pork chop bento around noon and ate several bites before moving aside the vegetables to reach the rice.
Source: @nelson0414ci on Threads
He then noticed a dark object inside the meal, which he discovered was the lower half of a cockroach. He said the insect’s head was missing, prompting him to immediately spit out the food.
The OP kept the bento box as evidence instead of throwing it away.
Source: @nelson0414ci on Threads
After arriving at Wuri Station, he vomited three times in a restroom due to nausea and later vomited again after reaching his destination.
He expressed anger over the incident, saying the meal was originally intended for his son and that the outcome could have been worse if a child had eaten it.
TRC issued an apology following the OP’s post on social media, saying it took the suspected foreign object incident seriously.
The operator said its Kaohsiung Catering Department, which produced the bento, had contacted the OP through his social media post and was attempting to arrange a personal apology and refund.
Source: @nelson0414ci on Threads
The company said it was reviewing its entire production and sales process, including product batches, manufacturing schedules and delivery routes, to identify possible hygiene issues.
The Kaohsiung City Department of Health sent inspectors to the bento production facility on Sunday afternoon after receiving reports of the incident.
Although no cockroaches or other pest activity were found during the inspection, officials found several food hygiene issues.
These included inadequate pest prevention measures at the facility entrance, as well as dirty and mouldy flooring.
Source: ETtoday
The factory had previously engaged a licensed pest control company for treatment every two weeks, with the latest session carried out last Wednesday (26 Aug).
Factory management acknowledged the incident and scheduled additional cleaning and disinfection work for Monday (31 Aug).
Health officials also collected samples from the same production batch for laboratory testing. Further action will depend on the test results.
Source: ETtoday
Environmental inspections conducted under the Regulations Governing Food Good Hygiene Practice uncovered multiple safety violations, including unsealed pest control entry points and mouldy, unhygienic flooring.
Authorities ordered the facility to take immediate corrective action.
Failure to comply could result in fines ranging from NT$60,000 (around S$2,400) to NT$200 million (around S$8 million) under Taiwan’s Act Governing Food Safety and Sanitation.
The Health Bureau reminded consumers with food safety complaints to contact local consumer service centres, the 1950 hotline, or the department’s Food Sanitation Division.
Also read: Customer allegedly finds cockroach inside fried rice bought from Kampung Admiralty restaurant
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Featured image adapted from @nelson0414ci on Threads.