TOKYO — Japanese officials will travel to China later on Monday to try to find out how dumplings made at a factory there were contaminated with pesticide, sickening 10 Japanese and sparking a nationwide food scare.
A further six packets have been found with pesticide on the outside of the wrappers, as a researcher working for the Chinese government warned the problem could harm relations with Japan.
Investigators have yet to identify the source of contamination, in the latest furor about the safety of Chinese products after incidents ranging from tainted pet food to toothpaste.
"Gradually, various facts are coming out but we still don't know the cause," Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura told a news conference, adding that Japanese officials would go to China on Monday evening.
Chinese officials are already in Japan to investigate the case, which became public when a food trading subsidiary of Japan Tobacco Inc last week recalled products from the factory that produced the dumplings.
Other firms followed suit, while restaurants and schools pulled products from their menus, prompting health queries from about 2,000 consumers.
Chinese food quality officials said on Saturday that tests on 30 samples of frozen dumplings, ingredients and packaging taken at the factory concerned had found no pesticide, which Japanese experts have said was used widely in China but not in Japan.
Read the full Reuters story here.