Seoul Mayor Oh inspects Chinese kimchi testing site, vows to ease public fears

After reports emerged that formaldehyde — a Group 1 carcinogen — had been used in kimchi production in China, the Seoul Metropolitan Government is moving to tighten inspections of kimchi ingredients. The city plans to operate a "four-layer safety net" covering everything from wholesale market arrivals to online and offline retail channels and consumption sites such as restaurants and traditional markets, and will release test results publicly to quickly address public concern.

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon visited the Seoul Institute of Public Health and Environment on Monday morning to personally review formaldehyde testing procedures for Chinese cabbage and kimchi and inspect the response systems of each participating agency. He received briefings on the analytical equipment and testing procedures, and examined the overall on-site response framework from sample collection through results disclosure and follow-up action. "Public anxiety over Chinese food ingredients in general has grown significantly following reports that formaldehyde was used in Chinese cabbage kimchi," Oh said. "We will strengthen regular inspections — not just for formaldehyde, but to check whether Chinese food ingredients may be exposed to heavy metals, various colorants, or other harmful substances."

The city is currently operating a "four-point safety management plan" that includes special origin-labeling and hygiene inspections at about 9,500 kimchi-handling establishments, collection and testing of Chinese cabbage kimchi in online and offline retail channels, immediate collection and testing of Chinese cabbage arriving at wholesale markets such as Garak Market, and regular public disclosure of formaldehyde test results for imported cabbage and kimchi in domestic distribution.

The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety tested 82 samples of Chinese cabbage, cabbage kimchi and salted cabbage in domestic distribution through Aug. 27 and found no formaldehyde in any of them. Formaldehyde is classified as a Group 1 carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer, a body under WHO, and is used in industrial applications, disinfection and biological tissue preservation. Public anxiety in South Korea has grown following reports that some areas of China's Hebei Province had used formaldehyde to keep cabbage fresh.

According to the city, no Chinese head cabbage — the variety at the center of the controversy — had been brought into Garak Market through August this year, while about 1,191 tons of Chinese "ssam" cabbage, a smaller leafy variety, had been imported.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government plans to operate a public-private joint task force involving the Seoul Institute of Public Health and Environment, the Seoul Metropolitan Agricultural and Marine Products Corporation, the Metropolitan Life Safety Police Agency and the city's 25 autonomous districts, with each agency assigned specific roles covering distribution monitoring, wholesale market surveillance, sample collection and testing, origin-labeling inspections, and investigation and disposition of violations.

The city will oversee the overall safety management plan and monitor the distribution of Chinese cabbage and kimchi. The Seoul Institute of Public Health and Environment will handle formaldehyde testing of Chinese cabbage and kimchi, while the Seoul Metropolitan Agricultural and Marine Products Corporation will monitor Chinese cabbage arrivals at wholesale markets and support sample collection. The Metropolitan Life Safety Police Agency will assist with investigations into non-compliant products and businesses, and the 25 autonomous districts will conduct intensive origin-labeling inspections at kimchi manufacturing and sales establishments and restaurants within their jurisdictions.

Alongside this, the city will conduct joint public-private special inspections on origin labeling and hygiene at about 9,500 kimchi-handling establishments through Sept. 30. All 10 kimchi food manufacturing and processing businesses will undergo comprehensive inspections, as will 490 banchan shops that prepare and sell ready-made side dishes.

Chinese cabbage arriving at Seoul wholesale markets, including Garak Market, will be collected and tested immediately upon arrival. The Seoul Metropolitan Agricultural and Marine Products Corporation will continuously monitor incoming shipments, and any Chinese cabbage identified will be collected on the spot for formaldehyde testing.

Formaldehyde test results for Chinese cabbage and kimchi in domestic distribution will also be released on a regular monthly basis. If products of concern are identified, the city will immediately share information with relevant agencies and move swiftly to block their distribution.

"We will ensure that origin labeling for food raw materials is accurately displayed at restaurants — the final point of consumption — and will thoroughly monitor the entire online and offline distribution process at every stage so that, at the very least, public anxiety about food can be kept to an absolute minimum," Oh said.