An expert who had been invited to give his views at an inter-ministerial meeting on the issue of US beef imports yesterday left about 10 minutes after the meeting began, saying that the process was not transparent.
Chou Chin-cheng (周晉澄), dean and chairman of the Institute of Veterinary Clinical Science at National Taiwan University’s School of Veterinary Medicine, walked out of the meeting — the second to be held on the controversy surrounding ractopamine residue in US beef imports — after his request that the Council of Agriculture make the transcripts of the meeting public was rejected.
“The government has to publicize all the information it bases its decisions on, regardless of whether the information is correct or incorrect,” Chou told reporters.
Photo: CNA
He said he was the only participant who wanted the council to provide either a transcript or video of the meeting to the public.
If the government really welcomes various opinions, the different views expressed in the meeting should be made public — not just the conclusions, Chou said.
Chou said he would attend the next committee meeting if invited, but would again insist that the discussions be made public.
Photo: Pichi Chuang, Reuters
At a press conference afterward, Council of Agriculture Deputy Minister Hu Sing-hwa (胡興華) said a majority of the participants were in favor of a closed-door meeting and opposed the release of a transcript so they could speak freely.
Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Tien Chiu-chin (田秋堇) and Taiwan Solidarity Union Legislator Lin Shih-chia (林世嘉) led about 30 people from nine civic groups in a small protest outside the council’s headquarters as the meeting was being held.
“We have three demands. First, as the issue is a public health matter, there is no room for compromise with the US. Second, the council has to open all of its meeting records for public inspection. Third, the committee should be reshuffled,” Homemakers’ Union and Foundation chairperson Chen Man-li (陳曼麗) said.
While the first meeting on the issue was criticized for being one-sided, several experts from the private sector who oppose the use of ractopamine in animal feed were invited to yesterday’s meeting, although they were in the minority.
Premier Sean Chen (陳冲) said the government would intensify its efforts to enforce control measures on feed additives.
His comments came after reports that traces of ractopamine residue had been found in US beef products in the local market.
The government could increase the inspection rate on US beef imports or revoke licenses from importers that fail to enforce restrictions on US beef imports that contain ractopamine residue, Chen said.
His comments came after some hypermarket chains, including Carrefour, RT-Mart and A-Mart, temporarily removed US beef products from their shelves after the products were found to contain traces of ractopamine.
“The use of beta-agonists [like ractopamine] is still banned. Sale of any meat which contains the substance is illegal.” the premier said.
Importers found violating the regulation would be subject to higher border inspection rates or could have import permits revoked,” he said.
Under pressure from Washington, where research has shown that ractopamine, a leanness-promoting agent, is used in the raising of 45 percent of US pigs and 30 percent of ration-fed cattle, the government has resigned itself to considering lifting the ban.
It is holding a series of inter-ministerial committee meetings to address the issue and set up a task force to re-examine the health risks surrounding ractopamine.
The moves have ignited consumer concerns over the safety of US beef. Local authorities recently began testing samples of US beef sold at hypermarkets to ascertain whether residue from drugs banned in Taiwan could be detected.
Two samples of US beef sold at RT-Mart and Carrefour in Taipei were found to have ractopamine residue, among a total of six items tested; in Greater Kaohsiung, traces of ractopamine were found in three of six items sold at Dollars and RT-Mart.
Kung Tsau-lien (鞏彩蓮), a representative of RT-Mart, said that all US beef products sold by the company were accompanied with certificates of export and certificates of quarantine from the US, as well as certificates of compliance issued by the Department of Health and the Council of Agriculture.
“It seems that [the certificates] were not enough,” Kung said.
Carrefour public relations manager Ho Mo-chen (何默真) said the company had pulled all US beef products from shelves and referred the products for testing.
“To safeguard consumers’ interest, we would not put them on the shelves unless they are assured it is ractopamine-free,” she said.
Additional reporting by CNA
STILL COMMITTED: The US opposes any forced change to the ‘status quo’ in the Strait, but also does not seek conflict, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said US President Donald Trump’s administration released US$5.3 billion in previously frozen foreign aid, including US$870 million in security exemptions for programs in Taiwan, a list of exemptions reviewed by Reuters showed. Trump ordered a 90-day pause on foreign aid shortly after taking office on Jan. 20, halting funding for everything from programs that fight starvation and deadly diseases to providing shelters for millions of displaced people across the globe. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who has said that all foreign assistance must align with Trump’s “America First” priorities, issued waivers late last month on military aid to Israel and Egypt, the
‘UNITED FRONT’ FRONTS: Barring contact with Huaqiao and Jinan universities is needed to stop China targeting Taiwanese students, the education minister said Taiwan has blacklisted two Chinese universities from conducting academic exchange programs in the nation after reports that the institutes are arms of Beijing’s United Front Work Department, Minister of Education Cheng Ying-yao (鄭英耀) said in an exclusive interview with the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister paper) published yesterday. China’s Huaqiao University in Xiamen and Quanzhou, as well as Jinan University in Guangzhou, which have 600 and 1,500 Taiwanese on their rolls respectively, are under direct control of the Chinese government’s political warfare branch, Cheng said, citing reports by national security officials. A comprehensive ban on Taiwanese institutions collaborating or
France’s nuclear-powered aircraft carrier and accompanying warships were in the Philippines yesterday after holding combat drills with Philippine forces in the disputed South China Sea in a show of firepower that would likely antagonize China. The Charles de Gaulle on Friday docked at Subic Bay, a former US naval base northwest of Manila, for a break after more than two months of deployment in the Indo-Pacific region. The French carrier engaged with security allies for contingency readiness and to promote regional security, including with Philippine forces, navy ships and fighter jets. They held anti-submarine warfare drills and aerial combat training on Friday in
COMBAT READINESS: The military is reviewing weaponry, personnel resources, and mobilization and recovery forces to adjust defense strategies, the defense minister said The military has released a photograph of Minister of National Defense Wellington Koo (顧立雄) appearing to sit beside a US general during the annual Han Kuang military exercises on Friday last week in a historic first. In the photo, Koo, who was presiding over the drills with high-level officers, appears to be sitting next to US Marine Corps Major General Jay Bargeron, the director of strategic planning and policy of the US Indo-Pacific Command, although only Bargeron’s name tag is visible in the seat as “J5 Maj General.” It is the first time the military has released a photo of an active
RSS