Ajinomoto apologizes to Indonesian public for pork controversy.

JAKARTA, Jan. 5 Kyodo

An Indonesian venture of Ajinomoto Co., a Japanese foodstuff maker, apologized Friday to Indonesian consumers following the discovery that certain food-flavoring products used in manufacturing contain pork fat, which is forbidden under Islamic Law.

''P.T. Ajinomoto Indonesia, with our deep sincerity, expressed apology to all of the Indonesian people who are our loyal customers,'' the company's board of directors said in a statement, adding the products have been withdrawn from the market since Jan. 3.

''And, actually, we have distributed products to replace the withdrawn ones since late December,'' the company spokesman Sugiarto told Kyodo News.

However, the company reiterated its earlier statement that the final monosodium glutamate products did not contain pork fat, as it was used only during the production process.

But to ''ease worries and return calm'' among the people, it decided to withdraw the products.

Separately, after meeting the members of P.T. Ajinomoto Indonesia's management Friday morning, the Ministry of Industry and Trade ordered the company to withdraw not only its 3,000-ton products that bear the Ajinomoto name, but also instant rice Nasiku, instant fried-rice Sajiku and food-flavoring Masako.

Director General for Domestic Trade Affairs Teddy Setiady said P.T. Ajinomoto Indonesia has violated the country's Consumer Protection Law, passed by the House of Representatives last year, by ''giving misinformation on its products.''

If the company refuses to withdraw the products, responsible company officials could face five years in jail or a maximum fine of two billion rupiah ($210,000).

On Wednesday, the government gave P.T. Ajinomoto Indonesia three weeks to withdraw the food-flavoring products.

Last week, the Indonesian Ulemas Council (MUI) revealed that the products may have been contaminated by enzymes originating from pork fat and urged the government to withdraw products manufactured and distributed before Nov. 23.

The findings were a stunning blow as Ajinomoto is one of the most-widely used flavor enhancement in the country.

The company later admitted it had used bactosoytone, extracted from pork, in place of polypeptide, which is extracted from beef, as a medium to cultivate bacteria that produces enzymes needed in the production of the taste enhancer for economic reasons.

In light of the controversy, P.T. Ajinomoto Indonesia, which has been doing business in Indonesia since 1969, has agreed to replace bactosoytone with mamenotone, which is extracted from soybeans, in its production process.

Under a 1997 government decree, the Ministry of Religious Affairs has the authority to examine food and issue the labels of ''halal'' or permissible for consumption by Muslims after receiving MUI approval.

In a related development, the state-run news agency Antara reported the P.T. Ajinomoto Indonesia factory in the East Java town of Mojokerto has been guarded by military soldiers since Thursday to prevent possible attacks by angry Muslims.

''Many people around here have been talking about the issue,'' Antara quoted Chusnul Ma'ab, a Muslim leader in the village of Mlirip, near the factory.

''As Muslims, we support the government's measures and MUI to order the withdrawal of the products from the market,'' Chusnul added.

Meanwhile, in the West Nusa Tenggara provincial capital of Mataram, where P.T. Ajinomoto Indonesia has a branch office, at least five company cars have been sent to the local police headquarters for the same reason.

West Nusa Tenggara Police Spokesman Adj. Comr. Tri Budi Pangastuti said the owner of the company ''is worried that something will happen in relation to news reports that Ajinomoto has a problem.''

Since the early 1990s, Muslims in Indonesia, who account for 90% of the country's population, have become more aware of the need to identify processed food products which are halal or ''haram'' forbidden under Islamic Law.

In late 1988, rumors circulated that some food products on the market contained pork fat. Unauthorized leaflets were circulated, listing products ranging from instant noodles to soaps as haram.

The leaflets gave out information based on research done by an East Java university lecturer, but it turned out that people distributing the leaflets had added items not originally on the list.

At the Tokyo Stock Exchange, Ajinomoto shares fell 2.72%, down 39 yen to 1,394 yen, in part due to the controversy in Indonesia, analysts said. The main cause of the decline, however, was selling in reaction to the surge in late December, they said.