Singapore to set up forensic unit to study food contamination

SINGAPORE, Oct. 1 (Xinhua) -- The Singaporean government plans to set up a forensic unit to study possible sources of food contamination in the future, local media reported on Wednesday.

Singapore's National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan told local reporters of this after visiting a public health lab, Channel NewsAsia reported.

The report said the forensic unit, under the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA), will likely be operational in one month.

Singapore authorities have been testing for melamine in dairy products over the past two weeks. Some 2,000 samples from 1,000 products have been taken by the AVA for testing, said the report.

So far, about 600 products have been tested, and ten of these were found to be contaminated with melamine.

Aside from milk and dairy items from China, the AVA are also testing products from other countries like the United States and even Singapore-made ones, said the report.

Mah was quoted as saying that Singapore has a very tight food security and safety system, but there is no guarantee that such a contamination will not happen again.

"What we need to do is to strengthen our vigilance system. Meaning, not just depend on what we read but also perhaps our intelligence on the ground, with our overseas partners, and to strengthen our information gathering so that the chances of such things happening can be reduced. In other words, we keep our eyes and ears on the ground more," he said.