| Video footage shows workers at a dried squid factory stepping on piles of squid. Screenshot from TikTok |
By Bahk Eun-ji
A controversy over poor hygiene practices in food preparation has arisen following the release of video footage showing workers at a dried squid factory treading on squid while wearing rubber footwear.
The 27-second video was posted to an online community on Saturday, along with the title, “Factory making dried squid products in an unhygienic way.”
The clip, originally posted on TikTok by a foreign employee, shows workers in white rubber shoes moving back and forward stepping on dried squid, supposedly to flatten them out.
In another video clip uploaded by the worker, the workers are sorting squid without wearing masks properly.
As the video went viral, many online users expressed their shock at the unhygienic process of making dried squid.
“I used to eat a lot of dried squid, but I'm worried that it may have been produced there,” one user wrote.
Some users said they reported this to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety.
But another wrote that squid tends to curl up when it is dried, so the flattening process is required. “Using your feet to tread on the squid is how people used to do it at home, and the factory owner seems to be doing so to save costs without proper facilities.”
However, another also wrote, “Even if the shoes are only for the process and the workers wear other shoes when going outside, they still should have put some clean sheets on the ground. They are just doing the work on the bare floor. This is disgusting.”
Following reports, the ministry identified the factory and the company with a product packaging box that appeared in the video, and immediately conducted an investigation into the factory located in Yeongdeok, North Gyeongsang Province.
The ministry said, Monday, it confirmed violations of the law on food hygiene and asked the local government to take administrative measures against the company.
It was found that this company's violations continued from Oct. 26 of last year to Jan. 8. According to the ministry, 3,898 kilograms of dried squid produced during the period have all remained in storage and have not gone into distribution.