An expert who had been invited to give his views at an inter-ministerial meeting on the issue of US beef imports yesterday left about 10 minutes after the meeting began, saying that the process was not transparent.
Chou Chin-cheng (周晉澄), dean and chairman of the Institute of Veterinary Clinical Science at National Taiwan University’s School of Veterinary Medicine, walked out of the meeting — the second to be held on the controversy surrounding ractopamine residue in US beef imports — after his request that the Council of Agriculture make the transcripts of the meeting public was rejected.
“The government has to publicize all the information it bases its decisions on, regardless of whether the information is correct or incorrect,” Chou told reporters.
Photo: CNA
He said he was the only participant who wanted the council to provide either a transcript or video of the meeting to the public.
If the government really welcomes various opinions, the different views expressed in the meeting should be made public — not just the conclusions, Chou said.
Chou said he would attend the next committee meeting if invited, but would again insist that the discussions be made public.
Photo: Pichi Chuang, Reuters
At a press conference afterward, Council of Agriculture Deputy Minister Hu Sing-hwa (胡興華) said a majority of the participants were in favor of a closed-door meeting and opposed the release of a transcript so they could speak freely.
Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Tien Chiu-chin (田秋堇) and Taiwan Solidarity Union Legislator Lin Shih-chia (林世嘉) led about 30 people from nine civic groups in a small protest outside the council’s headquarters as the meeting was being held.
“We have three demands. First, as the issue is a public health matter, there is no room for compromise with the US. Second, the council has to open all of its meeting records for public inspection. Third, the committee should be reshuffled,” Homemakers’ Union and Foundation chairperson Chen Man-li (陳曼麗) said.
While the first meeting on the issue was criticized for being one-sided, several experts from the private sector who oppose the use of ractopamine in animal feed were invited to yesterday’s meeting, although they were in the minority.
Premier Sean Chen (陳冲) said the government would intensify its efforts to enforce control measures on feed additives.
His comments came after reports that traces of ractopamine residue had been found in US beef products in the local market.
The government could increase the inspection rate on US beef imports or revoke licenses from importers that fail to enforce restrictions on US beef imports that contain ractopamine residue, Chen said.
His comments came after some hypermarket chains, including Carrefour, RT-Mart and A-Mart, temporarily removed US beef products from their shelves after the products were found to contain traces of ractopamine.
“The use of beta-agonists [like ractopamine] is still banned. Sale of any meat which contains the substance is illegal.” the premier said.
Importers found violating the regulation would be subject to higher border inspection rates or could have import permits revoked,” he said.
Under pressure from Washington, where research has shown that ractopamine, a leanness-promoting agent, is used in the raising of 45 percent of US pigs and 30 percent of ration-fed cattle, the government has resigned itself to considering lifting the ban.
It is holding a series of inter-ministerial committee meetings to address the issue and set up a task force to re-examine the health risks surrounding ractopamine.
The moves have ignited consumer concerns over the safety of US beef. Local authorities recently began testing samples of US beef sold at hypermarkets to ascertain whether residue from drugs banned in Taiwan could be detected.
Two samples of US beef sold at RT-Mart and Carrefour in Taipei were found to have ractopamine residue, among a total of six items tested; in Greater Kaohsiung, traces of ractopamine were found in three of six items sold at Dollars and RT-Mart.
Kung Tsau-lien (鞏彩蓮), a representative of RT-Mart, said that all US beef products sold by the company were accompanied with certificates of export and certificates of quarantine from the US, as well as certificates of compliance issued by the Department of Health and the Council of Agriculture.
“It seems that [the certificates] were not enough,” Kung said.
Carrefour public relations manager Ho Mo-chen (何默真) said the company had pulled all US beef products from shelves and referred the products for testing.
“To safeguard consumers’ interest, we would not put them on the shelves unless they are assured it is ractopamine-free,” she said.
Additional reporting by CNA
KEY INDUSTRY: The vice premier discussed a plan to create a non-red drone supply chain by next year, which has been allocated a budget of more than NT$7.2 billion The government has budgeted NT$44.2 billion (US$1.38 billion) to cultivate Taiwan’s uncrewed aerial vehicle (UAV) industry over the next five years, which would make the nation a major player in the industry’s democratic supply chain in the Asia-Pacific region, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said yesterday. Cho made the remarks during a visit to the facilities of Cub Elecparts Inc (為升電裝). Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chen Su-yueh (陳素月) and Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Hsieh Yi-fong (謝依鳳) also participated in the trip. Cub Elecparts has transitioned from the automotive industry to the defense industry, which is the top priority among the nation’s
‘UNFRIENDLY’: Changing the nationality listing of Taiwanese residents to ‘China’ goes against EU foreign policy as well as democratic and human rights principles, MOFA said Taiwan yesterday called on Denmark to correct its designation of the nationality of Taiwanese residents as “China” or face retaliatory measures. The Danish government in 2024 changed the nationality of Taiwanese citizens on their residence permits from “Taiwan” to “China.” The decision goes against EU foreign policy and contravenes democratic and human rights principles, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) spokesman Hsiao Kuang-wei (蕭光偉) said. Denmark should present a solution acceptable to Taiwan as soon as possible and correct the erroneous designation to preserve the longstanding friendship between the two nations, Hsiao said. The issue could damage Denmark’s image and business reputation in Taiwan,
SOUTH KOREA DISPUTE: If Seoul continues to ignore its request, Taiwan would change South Korea’s designation on its arrival cards, the foreign ministry said If South Korea does not reply appropriately to a request to correct Taiwan’s name on its e-Arrival card system before March 31, the government would take corresponding measures to change how South Korea is labeled on the online Taiwan Arrival Card system, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday. South Korea’s e-Arrival card system lists Taiwan as “China (Taiwan)” in the “point of departure” and “next destination” fields. Taipei has asked Seoul to change the wording. Since March 1, South Koreans who hold government-issued Alien Resident Certificates (ARC) have been identified as from “South Korea” rather than the “Republic of Korea,” the
SUFFICIENT: The president said Taiwan has enough oil for next month, with reserves covering more than 100 days and natural gas enough for 12 to 14 days A restart plan for the Guosheng Nuclear Power Plant in New Taipei City’s Wanli District (萬里) and the Ma-anshan Nuclear Power Plant in Pingtung County’s Hengchun Township (恆春) would be submitted to the Nuclear Safety Commission by the end of the month, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday, reversing the government’s policy to abolish nuclear energy. On May 17 last year, Taiwan shut down its last nuclear reactor and became the first non-nuclear nation in East Asia, fulfilling the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government’s pledge of a “nuclear-free homeland.” Even without nuclear power, Taiwan can maintain a stable electricity supply until 2032,
RSS