Government efforts to prevent African swine fever from spreading to Taiwan during the Lunar New Year holiday next year would be more challenging than this year, as the virus has infected more nations, Council of Agriculture (COA) Minister Chen Chi-chung (陳吉仲) said yesterday.
This year, Taiwan only had to guard against the outbreak in China, but since then, the virus has spread to 10 East Asian nations, he said while inspecting quarantine procedures for parcels from abroad at Chunghwa Post Co’s (中華郵政) mail processing center in Taipei.
Travelers carrying hams, sausages and other cured products from overseas are the largest source of illegal meat products and could affect epidemic prevention efforts during the Lunar New Year, which falls on Jan. 25, said Chen, who is also the head of the central emergency operation center for African swine fever in Taiwan.
Photo: Hsiao Yu-hsin, Taipei Times
Parcel deliveries are the second-largest source, he added.
Statistics showed that from August last year to October, more than 400 parcels were found to contain illegal meat products, he said.
During the Mid-Autumn Festival period in September, eight times as many parcels were found to have breached regulations, he added.
As the peak season for gift-giving during the Lunar New Year approaches, the government is concerned that Taiwanese or foreign visitors unaware of the situation could order or send meat products via mail, he said.
Once found, such parcels are destroyed or returned, he said.
The Act for Prevention and Control of Infectious Animal Disease (動物傳染病防治條例) also stipulates that e-commerce platforms cannot sell meat products from areas where there has been an outbreak of African swine fever, he said, adding that violators could be fined NT$30,000 to NT$150,000.
Amendments to the act passed by the Legislative Yuan are to take effect on Friday, he said.
From Dec. 14 last year, when the fine for travelers carrying illegal meat products into Taiwan was raised, to the end of last month, the highest number of breaches have come from travelers from China with 560 cases, followed by those from Vietnam with 50, South Korea with 12 and the Philippines with 10, said Tung Hao-te (董好德), head of the Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine’s Keelung branch.
A total of 632 cases incurred NT$200,000 fines, he said, adding that September had the highest number of violations in a single month, mainly due to the Mid-Autumn Festival gift-giving tradition.
From August last year to October, 7,182.74kg of pork or products containing pork that were not quarantined were found, he said.
Additional reporting by CNA
Japan has deployed long-range missiles in a southwestern region near China, the Japanese defense minister said yesterday, at a time when ties with Beijing are at their lowest in recent years. The missiles were installed in Kumamoto in the southern region of Kyushu, as Japan is attempting to shore up its military capacity as China steps up naval activity in the East China Sea. “Standoff defense capabilities enable us to counter the threat of enemy forces attempting to invade our country ... while ensuring the safety of our personnel,” Japanese Minister of Defense Shinjiro Koizumi said. “This is an extremely important initiative for
MORE POPULAR: Taiwan Pass sales increased by 59 percent during the first quarter compared with the same period last year, the Tourism Administration said The Tourism Administration yesterday said that it has streamlined the Taiwan Pass, with two versions available for purchase beginning today. The tourism agency has made the pass available to international tourists since 2024, allowing them to access the high-speed rail, Taiwan Railway Corp services, four MRT systems and four Taiwan Tourist Shuttles. Previously, five types of Taiwan Pass were available, but some tourists have said that the offerings were too complicated. The agency said only two types of Taiwan Pass would be available, starting from a three-day pass with the high-speed rail and a three-day pass with Taiwan Railway Corp. The former costs NT$2,800
POLLS CONCERNS: There are concerns within the KMT that a Cheng Li-wun-Xi Jinping meeting could trigger a voter backlash in elections in November Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) accepted an invitation from Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) to visit next month, her party and Chinese state media reported yesterday. Cheng, who took up her role in November last year, “gladly accepted” the invitation to lead a delegation to China, the KMT said in a statement, confirming a Xinhua news agency report. Cheng “looks forward to joint efforts by both parties to advance the peaceful development of cross-strait relations, promote cross-strait exchanges and cooperation, and work for peace in the Taiwan Strait and greater well-being for people on both sides,” the statement said. Chinese
SIGNIFICANT TO THE WORLD: The delegation’s visit aims to send a clear message that bipartisan support for Taiwan is consistent, US Senator Jeanne Shaheen said The US Senate’s bipartisan support for Taiwan remains strong and Taiwan-US ties would continue for decades to come, a US Senate delegation said in Taipei yesterday, while calling on the legislature to swiftly pass a special defense budget bill. A US delegation led by Democratic US Senator Jeanne Shaheen and Republican US Senator John Curtis — both members of the US Senate Committee on Foreign Relations — arrived in Taiwan yesterday for a two-day visit. The other senators of the delegation included Senate Taiwan Caucus cochair Thom Tillis and Senate Committee on Armed Services senior member Jacky Rosen. Shaheen told a news
RSS