Duterte orders NBI probe on lambanog poisoning incidents

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) revealed on Wednesday that five out of seven samples of coconut wine, which were collected from Rizal town in Laguna, tested positive for high levels of methanol. (File photo: Mark & Andrea Busse/Flickr, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) was directed to look into the alleged lambanog (coconut wine) poisoning incidents in Luzon over the Christmas holidays.

Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra told reporters on Friday, December 27, that it was President Rodrigo Duterte’s order, saying that the latter wants the NBI to submit a report about the matter “immediately.”

Guevarra said this after Health Undersecretary Eric Domingo told ANC’s Early Edition that 16 people were killed, while 400 others were hospitalized after drinking coconut wine in various provinces in Luzon.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) revealed on Wednesday that five out of seven samples of coconut wine, which were collected from Rizal town in Laguna, tested positive for high levels of methanol.

The samples, it said, contained 11.4 percent to 18.2 percent methanol.

“Very low levels of methanol may be present in alcoholic beverages provided they are byproducts of natural fermentation. The high levels found in the samples makes them toxic,” Domingo earlier said, adding that drinking 30 milliliters of methanol (mL) is fatal.

For safety, Domingo urged the public to purchase only FDA-approved food and drink products in the market.

Malacañang, meanwhile, previously said it was “alarmed” over the reported cases of coconut wine poisoning.

“We remind the public that they should always check whether their alcohol purchases, or any product that they consume for that matter, have been registered or approved by the Food and Drug Administration,” Panelo said.

“Prudence dictates that we should always be mindful of what we ingest, particularly during this time of merrymaking,” he added.

The sale of the liquor was also temporarily banned in the province of Laguna following the incident.