Grain industry slams imports from China

Domestic grain associations yesterday warned that the government's recent decision to approve the importation of grains from foot-and-mouth disease-affected China may threaten Taiwan's livestock industry.

"With China's inadequate inspection and quarantine system, the possibility of contagious animal diseases finding their way into Taiwan via the imported grains is likely to increase," said Huang Ching-ho (黃錦和), secretary-general of the Taiwan Flour Mills Association (台灣麥粉公會).

The government should take precautions against the infiltration of diseases such as foot-and-mouth disease and avian flu via the imported grains in order to protect the local livestock industry, Huang said.

Huang's warning came after the Board of Foreign Trade on Monday approved the importation of corn from China as an "emergency measure" after US port closures in early October threatened a shortage of the grain.

The new rule, which will only be in force until the end of the year, is expected to help curb a rising corn price, which has been rising from NT$5.2 to NT$6 per kilogram over the last three weeks, Huang said.

The Taichung-based Federation of Swine Cooperatives (豬聯社) has already placed an order to China's Cofco Grains & Oils Import & Export Co (中國糧油集團), marking the first cross-Taiwan Strait grain sale in 50 years. The shipment of 12,000 metric tons of corn is expected to arrive at Taiwan's ports in the middle of November, said an official of the federation.

Taiwan Flour's Huang said the importers intend to purchase corn from China simply to take advantage of a possible shortage due to the port closure in the US. Taiwan imports about 5 million tons of corn a year, almost exclusively from the US.

"They [importers] only focus on the short-term profit, but ignore the possible long-term impact on Taiwan's livestock market," he said.

The Taiwan Feed Industry Association (台灣飼料公會) yesterday also said that the market demand was not affected that much because only one-third of US corn was shipped from west coast ports, with the remaining two-thirds coming from the east coast.

Moreover, there will be no shortage of corn for the local industry because some 400,000 to 500,000 tons of corn will be shipped to Taiwan in November and December, said the Taiwan Feed official, who declined to be named.

"As the price of corn has returned to normal, we really don't know why the government decided to open up the market," he said.

Perhaps the main reason for the opening was to switch corn imports from the US, which had been the nation's only corn supplier, to China, where increased production brought prices to below US levels, the official said.

According to the association, corn from China is around US$10-per-ton cheaper than corn from the US -- which is going for around US$124 per ton. Corn shipments from China will also arrive in Taiwan three weeks faster than shipments from the US.

In response, Wayne Wu (吳文雅), director-general of the BOFT, yesterday said that the government lifted the ban because the corn price in Taiwan is still not stable and because the slow speed of work in the US ports may delay the shipments to Taiwan.

To assure the local industry, the government will move fast to improve the inspection of corn from China, Wu added.