By Lee Shi-Ian

KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA: Viagra, which was previously detected in coffee mixtures and sweets, has now been found in fruit juices.

Enforcement officers from the Health Ministry raided more than 30 retailers and distributors dealing in the fruit juice and seized several hundred thousand ringgit worth of the product.

This came about after the ministry, acting on a tip-off, sent samples of the product for tests which confirmed the presence of sildenafil.

Sildenafil citrate, sold as Viagra, Revatio and various other trade names, is a drug used to treat erectile dysfunction.

In Malaysia, it can only be obtained on a doctor's prescription.

A Health Ministry source said this was the first time they had encountered a case where sildenafil had been mixed with fruit juices. This mixture is potent and deadly to people suffering from heart disease and high blood pressure.

"It was brought to our attention after several people complained to the ministry about the suspicious fruit juice," the source said.

"The producer and distributor had claimed that the fruit juice had been produced from selected natural herbs which could improve sexual performance of men and women."

After receiving the test results, investigations were conducted to identify retailers and distributors involved in selling the fruit juice.

"More than 30 simultaneous raids were carried out nationwide. Officers were also concerned that the retailers and distributors would hide their stocks as the product had also been sold via direct selling," the source said.

"At the raid at the company's headquarters in Subang Jaya, three marketing officers and the store caretaker were questioned by authorities."

Investigations revealed that the fruit juice had been in the local market for the past six months and had received good response from consumers.

Enforcement officers found hundreds of boxes containing the fruit juice.

Each box of fruit juice contained five sachets of juice in powdered form and costs more than RM50. The consumer needs to mix the powder with water before drinking.

It is learnt that as a result of the nationwide raid, enforcement officers had seized more than 600 boxes of the fruit juice estimated to be worth several hundred thousand ringgit.

"Based on documents seized from the company's headquarters, the fruit juice was manufactured at a factory in Kajang," the source said.

Those with information on such activities can call the enforcement division at 03- 78413200.