The Department of Health (DOH) yesterday said its amended draft regulation, which lowers nuclear radiation tolerance limits in food, actually broadens the scope of its control.
The agency made the remarks in response to concerns raised by legislators and civic groups over its plan to amend the Standard of Safety Tolerance of Nuclear Fallout or Radioactivity Contamination for Food, which included revising safety tolerance limits for radioactive isotopes Cesium-134 and Cesium-137 in food from 370 becquerels per kilogram (Bq/kg) to 600Bq/kg.
The revised levels led to concerns from several civic groups, who questioned why the new permitted level of Cesium-134 and Cesium-137 in food fell below the standard set in Japan, where food is more likely to be contaminated by radiation due to the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant crisis.
Some group members raised concerns that the change in standards could result in Taiwan importing radiation-contaminated food from Japan.
At a public hearing held by legislators on Thursday, Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Director-General Kang Jaw-jou (康照洲) said assessment on revising standards began in 2010.
During the assessment, the department referred to international scientific evaluations and found that the draft regulation listed more the types of radioactive isotopes listed for control than the previous regulation.
The revised regulation actually broadens the scope of control and is not intended to benefit particular countries, Kang said, adding that “imported food from five prefectures in Japan is still prohibited in Taiwan.”
Kang said the FDA would consider the suggestions from civic groups and also communicate with them on the standards.
In a new statement, the FDA said that imports of food from five prefectures in Japan — Fukushima, Ibaraki, Tochigi, Gunma and Chiba — remained suspended, and eight types of food produced in other parts of Japan must go through lot-by-lot inspections for radiation levels, according to the same standards as those used in Japan
SCENARIOS: A potential conflict with Beijing would not be similar to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and China would target energy and food supplies, a researcher said China is likely to continue using economic and cyberoperations against Taiwan to force it to capitulate without resorting to a military attack, Fox News reported yesterday, citing the outcome of a tabletop exercise. Washington-based think tank the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) earlier this month held a tabletop exercise in Taipei focusing on Beijing’s use of economic and cybercoercion against Taiwan. The FDD mentioned an “anaconda strategy,” in which Beijing would likely use cyberwarfare and disinformation campaigns followed by a blockade or other measures to strangulate Taiwan, rather than attempting an invasion, the report said. A large-scale cyberattack would be
HSINCHU CASES: Five people among 35 who were reported being sick were still in hospital after eating at a vendor in a market in Jhubei, the local health agency said Thirty-five people have sought medical treatment for acute symptoms after allegedly eating banh mi (Vietnamese sandwiches) from a vendor in Jhubei City (竹北), the Hsinchu County Public Health Bureau said yesterday. The bureau said that since Saturday, it has received several reports of suspected food poisoning from hospitals. The vendor has been ordered to temporarily suspend its business, it said, adding that tests were being conducted to determine whether the people had food poisoning, with results expected in about two weeks. A preliminary investigation showed that the people who sought treatment had recently eaten banh mi at a vendor at a retail market
GOOD MODEL: Speaking at his book launch, Law said that Taiwan is the most democratic Chinese-speaking country, which is why Hong Kongers relocated here China has suffocated Hong Kong’s civil society and its next target could be Taiwan, Nathan Law (羅冠聰), cofounder of the disbanded pro-democracy Hong Kong political party Demosisto, said in Taipei yesterday. Law made the remarks at a launch in Taipei for his book When the Wind Blows — the Struggles for Freedom of Hong Kong (時代推著我們前行:羅冠聰的香港備忘錄). Law has been living in the UK since he fled Hong Kong in 2020, and the book is about his fighting for the cause of freedom in the area. He was granted political asylum in 2021. “Fleeing is a long and distressing process, but it also
IMITATING OTHERS? Tsai Ing-wen’s office said the former president rents a commercial unit for her personal office and had never used election funds to purchase real estate Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Chairman Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) yesterday confirmed that he used about NT$43 million (US$1.35 million) from his presidential election subsidy to purchase an office unit near the Legislative Yuan in May. Ko made the remarks after Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) earlier in the day told a news conference that she received a tip-off that the TPP chairman had purchased a 48.76 ping (161.2m2) office unit at Jinan Building (濟南大樓), a commercial building in Taipei’s Zhongzheng District (中正). Lin said that Ko purchased the unit on May 10, paying about NT$43 million in cash,