FOIA inspection reports detail mold, insects and document handling at two Chinese GLP-1 ingredient plants

Bloomberg reported on October 15, 2026 that Food and Drug Administration inspection reports obtained under the Freedom of Information Act document conditions at two Chinese manufacturers of active pharmaceutical ingredients used in compounded GLP-1 weight-loss products. The reporting covers Chengdu Shengnuo Biopharm Co. and Nanjing Chengong Pharmaceutical Co., both suppliers of semaglutide and tirzepatide ingredients to the compounding supply chain.

According to the reports, FDA inspected Chengdu Shengnuo's facility on August 20-22, 2026 and again on August 24 and 27, 2026, and issued a Form FDA 483 on August 27 listing eight observations. Inspectors described black mold on equipment, "gross contamination" on floors and significant insect activity in ceilings. The reports also describe quality-control staff removing laboratory documents from the facility and concealing them in lockers, and personnel pouring out product samples into sinks during the inspection in what inspectors called a "seemingly coordinated effort." A Form FDA 483 records inspectional observations; it is not a final agency determination and it is not a warning letter.

Chengdu Shengnuo Biopharm, a unit of the publicly listed Chengdu Shengnuo Biotec Co., was placed on FDA's Import Alert 66-40 effective September 19, 2026; the firm appears on the alert's current published firm list. Import Alert 66-40 authorizes detention without physical examination of products from firms that have not met current good manufacturing practice requirements, so listed firms' shipments can be refused at the border without individual testing. The company stated in a Chinese regulatory filing that it submitted its response and corrective actions to FDA on September 17, 2026, that it has not received a warning letter, and that it is continuing remediation. The same filing reported first-half 2026 US sales of approximately 167 million yuan (about $24.9 million), roughly a third of the company's revenue; its share price fell about 18 percent after the import alert was announced.

A separate FDA inspection in September 2026 at Nanjing Chengong Pharmaceutical found staff purchasing active ingredients produced by other factories and applying Nanjing Chengong's own approval seal to those materials without reviewing the source manufacturers' testing or safety documentation. Bloomberg reported that FDA last inspected that facility in March 2025, and that both companies were placed on an import alert list; FDA's published Import Alert 66-40 firm list confirmed Chengdu Shengnuo's listing at the time of this review, while a matching published listing for Nanjing Chengong was not located during our check of FDA's import alert data.

The reporting also cites a 2025 Brookings Institution analysis finding that a substantial share of active ingredients used in compounded weight-loss drugs originates in China. Compounded drugs are not FDA-approved, which means the agency does not review them for safety, effectiveness or quality before they are marketed. Inspection findings at an ingredient supplier describe manufacturing conditions; they are not evidence about any particular finished compounded product or pharmacy.

Limits: this brief summarizes press reporting of FOIA-obtained inspection documents and FDA's public import alert data. A Form FDA 483 and an import alert listing are enforcement and compliance tools, not proof that any specific patient was harmed or that any specific product is contaminated. Nothing here is treatment guidance, dosing information, or a recommendation about obtaining any medication; patients with questions about a compounded prescription should speak with their prescriber or pharmacist.