Health Ministry will continue monitoring 'fake rice'

The Health Ministry will continue to be vigilant in monitoring the issue of 'fake rice' being produced in China.

In a statement today, ministry director-general Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said the ministry would duly update the public if there was any new finding that concerned food safety.

He also advised those consumers who were suspicious of the authenticity of rice to notify the ministry via the nearest health office or Food Safety and Quality (FSQ) Division website http://fsq.moh.gov.my or www.facebook.com/bkkmhg.

He said the ministry was aware of the allegation circulating in the social media that 'fake rice' was being produced in China by mixing potatoes/sweet potatoes with plastic resin.

Such rice was then exported to a number of Asian countries.

Meanwhile, Dr Noor Hisham said, according to Padiberas Nasional Berhad (BERNAS), the majority of rice imports came from Vietnam, Thailand and Pakistan.