Food safety agency finds no coloring in eight Chinese stem lettuce samples

South Korea’s food safety agency found no edible coloring in any of the eight samples of Chinese stem lettuce it urgently tested after reports of dyed produce entering distribution.

The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety said on the 8th that it collected and examined eight Chinese stem lettuce products being sold in South Korea. None tested positive for edible coloring. The vegetable is commonly known domestically as gungchae.

The agency said natural agricultural products cannot contain any added coloring, including food coloring. It is now conducting further tests at the domestic distribution stage and plans to collect more Chinese stem lettuce from the market.

South Korea also strengthened inspections during customs clearance on Chinese stem lettuce starting on the 7th. Import shipments will be checked for the use of edible coloring as the agency continues to verify whether the products comply with food safety rules.

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In connection with reports that stem lettuce using edible coloring was being distributed in Gansu province, we urgently collected and tested eight products distributed domestically, and no edible coloring was detected in any of them.