Insecticide malathion detected in frozen foods in Japan

Major food company Maruha Nichiro Holdings began recalling more than 6.3 million packages of its frozen foods in Japan because some were found to contain an agricultural chemical.

The Tokyo-based company announced recently that an organic phosphate insecticide called malathion had been detected in some frozen foods produced by its affiliate Aqlifoods Co. in Oizumi, Gunma Prefecture.

No health problems have been reported as a result of the contamination, but Maruha Nichiro decided to suspend production at the factory and voluntarily recall all frozen foods shipped from there because the source of the chemical has not yet been identified, the company said.

Malathion is a relatively mild poison, and is directly sprayed over wheat and other cereal crops in the United States. It was registered as an agricultural chemical in 1953, and about a dozen firms sell it for exterminating aphids, spider mites and other pests.

According to Maruha Nichiro, all frozen foods produced at the Oizumi factory will be recalled—44 kinds for household use and 46 for business use. More than 6.3 million packages have been distributed across the nation.