Taiwan's top cooking oil maker sold fake olive oil for 7 years — founder jailed 12 years

大統長基食品廠 (Chang Chi Foodstuff Factory) was founded in 1977 and became one of Taiwan's largest cooking oil manufacturers, holding nearly 40% of the market. Its products included soybean oil, peanut oil, sesame oil, olive oil, and sauces. In October 2013, the company was exposed for a massive fraud: its '100% extra virgin olive oil' contained little to no olive oil, instead being a blend of cheaper cottonseed and sunflower oils colored with copper chlorophyllin — an illegal additive. The fraud had been ongoing for at least 7 years.

The scandal was uncovered by the Taiwan Food and Drug Administration following a tip-off. Investigators found that the company had systematically adulterated its premium olive oil products for years, using copper chlorophyllin to create the deep green colour consumers associate with high-quality olive oil. The company's shacha sauce was also found to contain substandard ingredients, including wet broad beans instead of peanuts and expired frozen fish. The revelations sparked a nationwide food safety crisis, with products pulled from shelves across Taiwan.

Company founder 高振利 was arrested and charged with fraud and violations of the Food Safety and Sanitation Act. The case went to trial in July 2014. The company was fined NT$38 million. An initial administrative fine of NT$1.85 billion was later overturned on double-jeopardy grounds — the criminal penalty took precedence. The company's brand was destroyed, and it was forced to cease operations, becoming one of the highest-profile casualties of Taiwan's food safety crisis.

The Da Tong scandal was the first in a series of food safety crises that rocked Taiwan in 2013–2014, followed by the Fwusow sesame oil adulteration and the Ting Hsin gutter oil scandal. These incidents collectively shattered consumer trust in Taiwan's food industry and led to stricter food safety regulations, including heavier penalties for food fraud. The case also highlighted how a single company holding 40% of a category could deceive consumers for years without detection.