A Tribute to Integrity in a Time of Decline

A Tribute to Integrity in a Time of Decline
United Daily News editorial (Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China)
A Translation
November 19, 2013

Summary: During a food crisis the public panics. But some companies within the industry are still quietly maintaining quality control. They still have consciences. They have earned our trust. Some government officials at the grassroots level are still conscientious. They are heroes whose efforts uncovered the truth. President Ma recently awarded King Star a medal. Let us not forget the unsung heroes in Changhua who contributed to our food safety.

Full text below:

The adulterated cooking oil scandal has raged for over a month. It has touched off a series of food safety crises that have yet to end. These crises have left the public with the feeling that they are living in a time of decline. Business ethics are in decline. Government efficiency is in decline. Consumer vigilance is in decline. Laws and regulations are in decline. Lawbreakers have nothing to fear. Amidst these concerns, consumers can rely only on themselves.

During this time of decline, the outrageous behavior of some companies has left people in shock. The companies include Chang Chi, Wei Chuan, Formosa Oilseed, Taisun, and Flavor Full. All of these manufacturing companies are well-known. Yet they engaged in deceit as long as they could get away with it. They lied through their teeth as long as could get away with it. Only when cornered, did they reluctantly apologize. They did not value the brands they built. They did not respect the consumers who trusted their products. They experienced no guilt over their lapse in business ethics. They have even refused to pay the fines the government imposed. How can companies such as this expect the public to forgive and forget?

Wei Chuan recently placed a large number of ads in the newspapers. It insisted that "It did not adulterate its products. It did not add adulterated oils. It too was a victim." It asked the court to make clear that Wei Chuan and Ting Hsin were "innocent victims." Its approach will only worsen the public backlash. True. Wei Chuan is not Chang Chi, the chief culprit, which did everything in its power to deceive. Wei Chuan did not intentionally adulterate its products. But to save on costs, it used Chang Chi as an OEM provider. Without careful quality control it affixed its own labels to the final products. Therefore how can it characterize itself as a victim?

Leave aside the question of whether Wei Chuan knowingly used adulterated ingredients. The Wei Chuan brand is sixty years old. It must introduce new products for a new era. It must meticulously control production for every one of them. Only that can ensure that a single mistep does not overturn the entire applecart. Only that can ensure that its products are not discredited along with those of its suppliers. Over 90% of Chang Chi's products were adulterated. Its name is mud. That is no big loss. A handful of Wei Chuan products have tarnished the image of the entire company. Was it worth it? Should consumers forgive Wei Chuan? That is not up to the pundits. But Wei Chuan has failed to offer a sincere apology and reassuring remedy. It persists in characterizing itself as a victim. This is truly unwise.

A company makes a rare misstep and suffers a corporate calamity. But look at the calamity from a different angle. Wave upon wave of scandals have struck, involving plasticizing agents, toxic starches, clenbuterol, adulterated cooking oils, and copper chlorophyllin. The real heroes are the companies that struggled long and hard to maintain the integrity of their brands. These companies must attend to every detail during procurement, quality control, research and development, and inspection. They must resist the temptation to rely on cheap, low-quality suppliers. They must constantly challenge themselves, sampling their own products, ensuring that they are 100% safe. Only by doing so can they survive wave upon wave of food safety crises.

Many companies on Taiwan boast about their integrity. But the food safety crisis has shown us the importance of meticulousness. Some manufacturers have cried foul. They have characterized themselves as victims. But if they had been meticulous, they would not have incorporated adulterated Chang Chi oil into their own products, merely to save on costs. They would have checked to see if the raw materials passed muster. That would have protected them from accusations of collusion. If they fail to provide quality products to consumers, how can they claim to be victims?

By the same token, government regulatory agencies were supposed to be the gatekeepers for food safety. But they were negligent. Serious lapses in food safety occurred. Four years ago, Spanish olive oil imports to Taiwan included other forms of oil. The Department of Health swept the matter under the rug. Two years ago, a National Science Council found that sesame oil sold on the market included soybean oil. People reported this. But the DOH had no intention of conducting a serious investigation. This is true also of the recently discovered adulterated oil. The Ministry of Health and Welfare charged the manufacturers with "false labeling" and imposed light fines. This was perhaps not a deliberate whitewash. But civil servants refused to investigate what they should have investigated. The administration is at the very least guilty of misconduct or negligence.

Fortunately the central government's failure to conduct proper food safety inspections was exposed by local government officials. The adulterated cooking oil scandal was exposed by the Changhua Health Bureau Food Safety Division and the Changhua District Prosecutors Office. They spent an entire year investigating the matter. Without this dozen or so people, consumers on Taiwan would still be ingesting adulterated cooking oil, artificially colored spinach noodles, and artificially colored green tea products. Cheng Chi-wen and Yeh Chien-cheng of the Changhua District Prosecutors Office prosecuted the clenbuterol and plasticizer cases years ago. These meticulous civil servants at the grassroots level worked hand in glove to plug food safety loopholes. They exposed companies that adulterated foods for profit. Their accomplishments put senior officials of the Ministry of Health and Welfare to shame. 

During a food crisis the public panics. But some companies within the industry are still quietly maintaining quality control. They still have consciences. They have earned our trust. Some government officials at the grassroots level are still conscientious. They are heroes whose efforts uncovered the truth. President Ma recently awarded King Star a medal. Let us not forget the unsung heroes in Changhua who contributed to our food safety.

大崩壞年代，向不茍的英雄致敬
【聯合報╱社論】
2013.11.20 03:20 am

假油事件爆發已一個多月，引發連串的食安風暴至今仍餘波未止。民眾在整起風暴中嗅到的，是一個「大崩壞年代」的氣味：企業倫理崩壞，行政管理崩壞，消費意識崩壞，乃至法令規章崩壞；犯罪者有恃無恐，消費大眾只能在顫慄不安下自求多福。

在這樣的大崩壞時代，一些企業經營者的膽大妄為與厚顏無恥，委實令人感到不堪。從大統長基到味全、福懋、泰山、富味鄉等企業，都是國內知名大廠，卻是一路能瞞則瞞、能賴則賴，直到狡賴不下去，才俯首道歉。然而，若對自己創造的品牌不加珍惜，對信賴自己產品的消費者沒有尊重，對自己的經營過失缺乏愧疚感，甚至連政府開出的罰款都不繳交，這樣的企業憑什麼要求社會原諒？

味全公司日前在報章刊登大幅廣告，自稱「沒有攙偽、沒有混油、只有受害」，請求法院釐清味全和頂新製油是「無辜受害」；此一作法，反而更滋社會反感。誠然，比起禍首大統公司千方百計造假，味全油品看似沒有那麼強烈的犯罪意圖；但是，為了貪圖便宜而委託大統代工，且未經審慎品管即率爾貼上自己的品牌標章，這豈能以「受害者」自居？

姑且撇開故意或知情不論，味全的品牌能維持一甲子之久，不僅產品要與時俱進推陳出新，更理應對每一項生產環節保持謹慎控管，才不致一個疏忽栽了跟斗，乃至所有產品均隨之陪葬。像大統這樣九成以上產品攙假的廠商，聲名塗炭也就算了；味全因少許幾項產品出事而敗壞了集團形象，划得來嗎？消費者要不要原諒味全，非輿論所能左右；然而，味全並未拿出比起其他企業更誠懇的補救措施，卻還自稱是「受害者」，實不明智。

從另一個角度看，在這些「偶一失足」而深受其殃的企業反面，人們應不難想像，那些經歷一波波塑化劑、毒澱粉、瘦肉精、假油、銅葉綠素風暴，卻始終能保持品牌於不墜的企業，才是真正不容易的英雄。這些企業必須盡心盡力處理每一細節，保持採購、品管、研發、檢驗過程的一絲不苟，抗拒低價劣質供應商的誘惑，甚至要不時挑戰、抽查自己的產品，才能確保百分之百安全無虞。也唯有如此，才能在食安海嘯席捲時安然度過。

台灣許多企業喜歡談「誠信」，但這次風暴，卻讓我們看到「不茍且」的重要。那些呼喊冤屈自稱「受害」的廠商，如果懷有不茍的精神，就不會為了貪圖低價而去進大統的假油，或至少必須認真追查這些原料是否合格；如此，即不致被指摘為同流合汙。不能提供品質確保的產品給消費者的企業，有什麼資格自稱受害！

同樣的，在行政體系對食品把關的疏漏中，我們也看到了嚴重的管理崩壞現象。四年前，西班牙即關切過台灣進口橄欖油混攙問題，衛生署卻草草應付了事；兩年前，國科會的委託報告中即發現市售麻油混攙大豆油，經人檢舉，衛生署對其間真相仍無意認真追查；包括此次剛查獲假油時，衛福部僅以「標示不實」輕輕對廠商罰款了事。這種種作法，就算不是出於刻意放水，公務員該查辦而未查辦，在行政上其實已構成了瀆職或怠忽。

值得慶幸的是，中央主管機關怠忽查察的真相，卻在地方公務員的努力追查下水落石出。這次大統假油事件，是彰化衛生局食品科人員和彰化地檢署檢察官合作下，費時一年追查的結果；沒有這十幾個人，全台消費者現在都還在吃黑心油，吃色素染出來的菠菜麵、抹茶製品。值得一提的是，彰化地檢署的鄭智文、葉建成兩位檢察官同時也是近年連續偵破瘦肉精案及塑化劑案的檢察官。一群「不茍且」的基層公務員，合力擋住了食品安全的漏洞，戳破了廠商造假致富的醜行；他們的成績，能不讓衛福部的高官汗顏？

食品風暴讓人恐慌，但別忘了，業界仍有一些默默謹守品質管理及良心規範的廠商，值得我們信賴；更別忘了，政府基層有一批認真不茍的英雄，努力不懈地幫我們揭開真相。馬總統最近連續頒發景星勳章，請別忘了彰化這支小兵立大功的食安悍將！