Pork importers should uphold their promises and only import ractopamine-free pork regardless of the outcome of Saturday’s referendum, Poultry Sale and Development Association honorary chairman Lee Chun-lai (李春來) said.
One of the items on the referendum ballot asks whether people agree that the government should prohibit imports of pork, offal or other related products containing traces of ractopamine.
Although use of the feed additive is banned for pigs in Taiwan, President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on Aug. 28 last year announced that Taiwan would ease restrictions on imports of pork containing traces of ractopamine, as well as beef from cattle aged 30 months or older.
Photo: Reuters
The Legislative Yuan on Dec. 24 last year approved administrative directives related to the government’s decision, which took effect on Jan. 1 this year.
The Council of Agriculture and the Ministry of Health and Welfare have created an online “Pork dashboard” (ifi.fda.gov.tw/ifi/pfp/cp/pfpcp0706q.jsp) which shows daily pork statistics.
As of Friday, it showed that none of the 76,082 tonnes of pork or pork intestines imported since Jan. 1 were found to contain ractopamine residue.
Lee, along with more than 80 pork importers, which make up about 90 percent of pork importers in Taiwan, on Dec. 3 last year issued a joint statement saying that they would continue to import ractopamine-free pork only.
“We may have humble origins, but we live up to our promises: We will not import any pork with ractopamine until the public can accept such additives in their meat,” Lee said on Saturday.
Lee said that the importers have not formed an organization and their actions were all voluntary.
The importers agree that there was no need to cause consumer alarm, and that pork with ractopamine residue would not have a market, he said.
“We, too, have to uphold our social responsibility,” he added.
The public seems to think most imported pork contains ractopamine, but that is not the case, Lee said, adding that while Taiwanese pork can supply 90 percent of the market, Taiwan is not completely self-sufficient in terms of pork production.
Lee urged pork importers to clearly label their products so that consumers feel at ease.
If Taiwanese remain confident that they will remain healthy buying local and imported pork, it would be a win-win scenario for the food and pork industries, Lee added.
The Taipei City Government yesterday said contractors organizing its New Year’s Eve celebrations would be held responsible after a jumbo screen played a Beijing-ran television channel near the event’s end. An image showing China Central Television (CCTV) Channel 3 being displayed was posted on the social media platform Threads, sparking an outcry on the Internet over Beijing’s alleged political infiltration of the municipal government. A Taipei Department of Information and Tourism spokesman said event workers had made a “grave mistake” and that the Television Broadcasts Satellite (TVBS) group had the contract to operate the screens. The city would apply contractual penalties on TVBS
A new board game set against the backdrop of armed conflict around Taiwan is to be released next month, amid renewed threats from Beijing, inviting players to participate in an imaginary Chinese invasion 20 years from now. China has ramped up military activity close to Taiwan in the past few years, including massing naval forces around the nation. The game, titled 2045, tasks players with navigating the troubles of war using colorful action cards and role-playing as characters involved in operations 10 days before a fictional Chinese invasion of Taiwan. That includes members of the armed forces, Chinese sleeper agents and pro-China politicians
The lowest temperature in a low-lying area recorded early yesterday morning was in Miaoli County’s Gongguan Township (公館), at 6.8°C, due to a strong cold air mass and the effect of radiative cooling, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. In other areas, Chiayi’s East District (東區) recorded a low of 8.2°C and Yunlin County’s Huwei Township (虎尾) recorded 8.5°C, CWA data showed. The cold air mass was at its strongest from Saturday night to the early hours of yesterday. It brought temperatures down to 9°C to 11°C in areas across the nation and the outlying Kinmen and Lienchiang (Matsu) counties,
STAY VIGILANT: When experiencing symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning, such as dizziness or fatigue, near a water heater, open windows and doors to ventilate the area Rooftop flue water heaters should only be installed outdoors or in properly ventilated areas to prevent toxic gas from building up, the Yilan County Fire Department said, after a man in Taipei died of carbon monoxide poisoning on Monday last week. The 39-year-old man, surnamed Chen (陳), an assistant professor at Providence University in Taichung, was at his Taipei home for the holidays when the incident occurred, news reports said. He was taking a shower in the bathroom of a rooftop addition when carbon monoxide — a poisonous byproduct of combustion — leaked from a water heater installed in a poorly ventilated
RSS