A shipment of 400 tonnes of French pork is expected to arrive in Kaohsiung Harbor late next month and might drive down pork prices, agricultural and economics officials said.
The officials said the shipment will be the first pork to arrive from France since the government last month approved French imports of pork that do not contain ractopamine.
The leanness-enhancing animal feed additive is heavily restricted in Taiwan and, while used in many countries, is banned by others over health concerns.
The French pork was imported by the National Animal Industry Foundation at the urging of the Representative to France Michel Lu (呂慶龍) in a bid to push down pork prices that peaked after a dysentery outbreak decimated the local pig population earlier this year.
Porcine epidemic diarrhea has been devastating Taiwan’s swine population since October last year, causing the price of piglets to skyrocket. According to the Council of Agriculture, the disease killed 40,000 piglets in February, which is still less than the peak of 70,000 in January.
Officials said they expect the pork from France to arrive before the Dragon Boat Festival on June 2, when pork consumption traditionally increases.
Taiwan applies the same policy to US pork, which can only be imported if certified by the US Department of Agriculture as ractopamine free, the officials said.
The nation had initially banned the feed additive in all imported meats, but relaxed regulations to allow beef imports containing set levels of ractopamine on Sept. 11 last year. However, cow and pig organs are still under the ban.
WANG RELEASED: A police investigation showed that an organized crime group allegedly taught their clients how to pretend to be sick during medical exams Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) and 11 others were released on bail yesterday, after being questioned for allegedly dodging compulsory military service or forging documents to help others avoid serving. Wang, 33, was catapulted into stardom for his role in the coming-of-age film Our Times (我的少女時代). Lately, he has been focusing on developing his entertainment career in China. The New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office last month began investigating an organized crime group that is allegedly helping men dodge compulsory military service using falsified documents. Police in New Taipei City Yonghe Precinct at the end of last month arrested the main suspect,
A cat named Mikan (蜜柑) has brought in revenue of more than NT$10 million (US$305,390) for the Kaohsiung MRT last year. Mikan, born on April 4, 2020, was a stray cat before being adopted by personnel of Kaohsiung MRT’s Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station. Mikan was named after a Japanese term for mandarin orange due to his color and because he looks like an orange when curled up. He was named “station master” of Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station in September 2020, and has since become famous. With Kaohsiung MRT’s branding, along with the release of a set of cultural and creative products, station master Mikan
RISING TOURISM: A survey showed that tourist visits increased by 35 percent last year, while newly created attractions contributed almost half of the growth Changhua County’s Lukang Old Street (鹿港老街) and its surrounding historical area clinched first place among Taiwan’s most successful tourist attractions last year, while no location in eastern Taiwan achieved a spot in the top 20 list, the Tourism Administration said. The listing was created by the Tourism Administration’s Forward-looking Tourism Policy Research office. Last year, the Lukang Old Street and its surrounding area had 17.3 million visitors, more than the 16 million visitors for the Wenhua Road Night Market (文化路夜市) in Chiayi City and 14.5 million visitors at Tainan’s Anping (安平) historical area, it said. The Taipei 101 skyscraper and its environs —
Taiwan on Friday said a New Zealand hamburger restaurant has apologized for a racist remark to a Taiwanese customer after reports that it had first apologized to China sparked outrage in Taiwan. An image posted on Threads by a Taiwanese who ate at Fergburger in Queenstown showed that their receipt dated Sunday last week included the words “Ching Chang,” a racial slur. The Chinese Consulate-General in Christchurch in a statement on Thursday said it had received and accepted an apology from the restaurant over the incident. The comment triggered an online furor among Taiwanese who saw it as an insult to the
RSS