Brazil News
| RECIFE, Brazil – The Attorney General's Office on Monday asked the Federal Police (PF) to open an investigation into the unlawful importation of medical waste by a clothing company in the Northeastern Brazilian state of Pernambuco. This follows the seizure by federal authorities last week of two shipping containers containing 46 tons of medical waste at the Port of Suape.
Pillowcases, sheets, gowns and pajamas used in U.S. hospitals – many of them stained with bodily fluids – allegedly served as raw material for clothing manufactured by a company with several plants in the state.
Many of the pieces were marked with the logo and name of a hospital cooperative in South Carolina, where the shipment originated. Others were marked with the name of U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Some of the material was marked with the warning “not for resale.” The customs declaration indicated that the containers held “defective cotton tissue.” Importation of medical waste is a crime in Brazil.
Over the weekend, the Pernambuco State Health Surveillance Agency (APEVISA) quarantined storage sheds belonging to the company at two of its plants, one in Santa Cruz and one in Capibaribe Toritama, 192 and 167 kilometers from the capital respectively. According to the manager of APEVISA, Jaime Brito, investigators found stained fabrics, probably blood, at the sites. Samples were sent to the Institute of Criminology for testing.
Toritama accounts for 60% of Brazil's production of jeans. The imported material was allegedly used to make pockets. According to Brito, the material would go through many washings and is not a danger for the wearer of the jeans. The workers who handled the material, however, may be contaminated with hepatitis C or airborne pathogens.
Customs discovered the scheme last week when they became aware of a disparity between the declared value and the volume of the cargo in a container which arrived at the Port of Suape. Another container was seized later in the week and there are 14 in transit now.
The company, which declared the contents “defective cotton tissue,” is subject to fines equivalent to between U.S. $1,100 and $850,000.
Read also: More Articles from Brazil Dispatch
Brazilian online news source for this article: G1 Penambuco
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