week1-Ting Hsin. Wei Ying-Chung. cooking oil tainted oil scandal

Taiwanese Tycoon Faces Charges in Cooking Oil Scandal

By AUSTIN RAMZY

OCTOBER 30, 2014 7:54 AM

A Taiwanese food industry tycoon faces more than 130 charges carrying a possible sentence of up to 30 years in prison in connection with a scandal over the widespread sale of substandard cooking oil.

Wei Ying-chung, 57, is the highest-profile suspect to face prosecution over revelations that have raised widespread questions about the safety of food in Taiwan and the quality of its food exports. Mr. Wei’s family owns the Ting Hsin International Group, which has broad interests in the food industry, particularly in China, where its Kang Shi Fu instant noodles are ubiquitous.

Earlier this month, Mr. Wei stepped down as chairman of three Ting Hsin subsidiaries, and the company announced it was pulling out of the Taiwan market for cooking oil. Prosecutors ordered Mr. Wei be detained two weeks ago as the investigation into the companies expanded.

The food safety scandal has centered on substandard cooking oil, often called “gutter oil” or “rancid oil.” The latest problems emerged in September, when the police raided a factory in southern Taiwan that was processing oil using waste from restaurants and slaughterhouses.

That investigation implicated a company, Chang Guann, that had sold hundreds of tons of tainted oil across Taiwan and for export around the region to locations including Hong Kong and Macau. Its chairman, Yeh Wen-hsiang, faces 235 counts of fraud and other charges.

The investigation into Ting Hsin was announced a month later. But Wei Chuan Foods Corporation, one of Ting Hsin’s Taiwan subsidiaries, had been involved in a food safety scandal last year, when it was found to have sold cooking oil that was substandard and contained illegal additives.

In the latest scandal, Ting Hsin is accused of selling cooking oils tainted with substandard materials, including products meant for animal feed it imported from Hong Kong and Vietnam. While no cases of serious illness have been linked to the scandal, it has raised questions about long-term effects and why the problem continued for more than a year after the first warning signs emerged.

http://sinosphere.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/10/30/taiwanese-tycoon-faces-charges-in-cooking-oil-scandal/?_r=0

Structure of the Lead：

       WHO-Wei Ying-Chung

             WHEN-OCTOBER 30, 2014 7:54 AM

   WHAT- cooking oil tainted oil scandal 

   WHY- Ting Hsin sold cooking oils tainted with substandard materials

   WHERE-not given

   HOW-not given

Keywords：

   1. tycoon 巨頭

   2. substandard 不合格的

   3. suspect 嫌疑人

   4. prosecution 檢察官
          5.  revelations 啟示

   6. investigation 調查

   7. gutter oil 地溝油

   8. slaughterhouses 屠宰場