Seoul city officials inspect cabbages and kimchi at a market in Seoul.

They are checking whether the origins are properly labeled and if any products containing hazardous substances are present.

[Seoul City Inspection Team Member : Here, the kimchi, cabbage, and red pepper powder are domestic. You have labeled the red pepper powder well. You must label the red pepper powder for the baechu kimchi as well.]

When it was revealed last August that farmers in Hebei Province, China, distributed cabbage with their bases soaked in formaldehyde to maintain freshness, domestic consumers were thrown into great anxiety.

This was because last year alone, 20,200-plus tons of cabbage and 336,000-plus tons of kimchi were imported from China.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government conducted investigations targeting 6,365 businesses handling cabbage and kimchi for about a month starting in late August.

As a result of examining 13 cases of Chinese cabbage and 48 cases of kimchi, zero cases of formaldehyde were detected. Furthermore, inspections of 6 cases of Chinese stem lettuce (gungchae) and 24 processed products showed no other hazardous components such as tar colors.

In addition, safety tests—including radioactivity tests—on 37 agricultural products and 155 imported marine products all received "clear" rulings.

Among the 6,356 businesses surveyed, 6 places that failed to label their origins were penalized with fines.

This inspection and testing were promoted as part of the establishment of the "four major safety nets" for imported food announced by the Seoul Metropolitan Government last August.

In addition to the import and customs clearance inspections managed by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, the plan is to re-inspect separately from the entry into wholesale markets to online and offline distribution, and actual consumption stages such as restaurants and traditional markets.

[Oh Se-hoon / Mayor of Seoul (August 31) : Through scientific inspections, we will regularly test whether substances harmful to the body and health are included and announce the results.]

The Seoul Metropolitan Government plans to wrap up investigations on the remaining kimchi-handling businesses and also conduct probes into newly imported foods for which overseas hazard information is confirmed.

(Photo: Yonhap News)
(Video Reported by Kim Heung-ki | Video Edited by Kim Yoon-sung | Produced by SBS Digital News)