April 26, 2024

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[THE INVESTOR] The government said on Dec. 19 it has fined 19 food manufacturers and restaurant owners 937 million won (US$862,084) for violating place of origin labeling rules.

It is the first time the government has imposed fines for such violations of the rule, which was promulgated in 2015, and had a two-year grace period.

Under the rule, the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs can impose up to 300 million won in fines for repeat violators.

Of those caught, 19 broke the rules at least twice while falsely labeling the origin of the foods they sold.

In one instance, the owner of a walnut cake shop falsely placed the origin of US walnuts as Korean in September 2015.

The owner was also found to have used Canadian beans, Chinese red beans and US walnuts while labeling them as Korean products.

The owner was fined the maximum amount of 300 million won for selling about 130 million won worth of walnut cakes made with imported ingredients.

By Alex Lee and newswires (alexlee@heraldcorp.com)