2.2 Million Hoarded Masks Seized and Supplied to Daegu and Gyeongbuk

On the 13th, customs officers at the Incheon Airport Import-Export Clearance Office in Yeongjongdo, Jung-gu, Incheon, are displaying masks seized due to smuggling amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The Korea Customs Service announced that during a focused crackdown from the 6th to the 12th of this month to prevent illegal overseas export of masks related to the COVID-19 situation, they blocked 72 cases involving 730,000 masks. / Yeongjongdo ? Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Dae-yeol] The government has identified companies violating the ban on hoarding masks and has allowed the priority supply of available quantities to the Daegu and Gyeongbuk regions. This measure comes in response to the sharp increase in COVID-19 patients.

On the 21st, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety announced that it had detected a manufacturing and sales company in Busan storing 5.24 million health masks. The Ministry identified the company through on-site investigations based on reports received at the hoarding report center and production and sales data submitted under the emergency supply and demand adjustment measures. The investigation revealed that from the 13th to the 18th, the company stored 5.24 million health masks in its warehouse, exceeding 150% of last year's average monthly sales volume (2.73 million units).

The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety has arranged for 2.21 million of the seized health masks, which are still available for distribution, to be supplied first to the Daegu and Gyeongbuk regions, where many COVID-19 cases have recently occurred. Previously, 350,000 health masks were also supplied preferentially to medical institutions, pharmacies, and marts in the Daegu and Gyeongbuk regions to support COVID-19 prevention.

Lee Eui-kyung, Commissioner of the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, stated, "We will thoroughly inspect the entire process from production to consumption of health masks and hand sanitizers and take strict action against illegal activities. We will actively support any needs at the production and distribution stages of companies."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.