The Foreign Ministry urged Taiwanese travelers to Japan to avoid using products containing red yeast rice on Tuesday as the numbers of those affected by Kobayashi Pharmaceutical red yeast rice supplements continue to rise.
Japanese drugmaker Kobayashi Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. red yeast rice supplements have recently caused a health scare. Five people have died and over 150 individuals have been hospitalized in Japan from ingesting their products. Eleven Taiwanese have also fallen ill from consuming Kobayashi Pharmaceutical’s health supplements.
The Foreign Ministry says that the Japanese government has confirmed the detection of puberulic acid in the supplements’ raw materials. However, how the supplements were contaminated is still undergoing investigation.
The Foreign Ministry's Taiwan-Japan Relations Association Secretary-General Fan Chen-kuo (范振國) says that Taiwanese traveling to Japan this cherry blossom season are reminded to avoid consuming or purchasing any red yeast products for now for safety reasons.
The ministry adds that the representative office in Japan has been instructed to closely monitor developments of the Kobayashi case and the latest updates on the case will be provided to relevant domestic authorities.