The first batch of blueberries commercially grown in Taiwan went on sale on Monday at convenience store chain 7-Eleven in a venture seeking to break the nation’s dependence on imports of the highly nutritious fruit.
Chiayi County Agricultural Department official Lee Chiu-ying (李秋瑩) said that the blueberries were grown in the county’s Fanlu Township (番路).
The Taiwan Blueberry Team was founded in 2016 and collaborated with Li Kuo-tan (李國譚), a professor in National Taiwan University’s Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture, to adapt techniques learned from the UK and the US, Lee said.
Photo: CNA
The team overcame weather and environmental limitations to successfully cultivate domestic blueberries at the foot of one of Taiwan’s most famous peaks, he said.
Chiayi Agricultural Department head Hsu Chang-min (許彰敏) said that most people associate agriculture in the Alishan (阿里山) area with tea and coffee.
He was happy that the Taiwan Blueberry Team set up at the foot of Alishan and introduced the berry to Taiwan’s agricultural scene, Hsu said.
Aside from 7-Eleven stores, people can also purchase domestically grown blueberries from the Taiwan Blueberry Web site, www.taiwanblueberry.com.
In other news, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) yesterday said that about 123 tonnes of Chilean cherries were denied entry into Taiwan after food safety tests showed they had pesticide residue in excess of its standards.
Nine shipments from Chile were found to have residue of cyantraniliprole, a broad-spectrum insecticide, after batch-by-batch inspections at the border, said Chen Ching-yu (陳慶裕), an official with the FDA’s Northern Center for Regional Administration.
Taiwan only allows cyantraniliprole within its standards in melons, cruciferous vegetables, tea leaves, apples and pears, the FDA said, adding that it is not allowed in imported cherries.
Since Jan. 11, all cherries imported from the South American nation have been subject to border testing after fruit shipments were found to be failing safety checks with increased frequency, Chen said.
Also named among 35 substandard food products on the latest list of refused food shipments published by the FDA yesterday were kumquats from Japan, frozen pork from Spain, mola mola intestines from Singapore and a shipment of Indonesian instant noodles.
All of the shipments that were flagged were either destroyed or returned to their country of origin, the FDA said.
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