The more open an industry is, the more competitive Taiwan will be, President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) said yesterday presiding over the opening of 2005 International Orchid Exhibition held in Tainan County.
The 16-day exhibition was launched yesterday at the Taiwan Orchid Plantation. At the opening ceremony, Chen said that economic protectionism would weaken local industries. However, an open orchid industry could be a successful niche for the nation in the international market.
According to the president, Taiwan's orchid industry has attracted the attention of Japan many Western countries. Chen said a persuading example was that last year the US approved the import of certain kinds of orchids from Taiwan.
Flowers in the sky
Chen also said that the Council of Agriculture has reached an agreement with China Airlines to display pictures of Taiwan's orchids on its flights.
"Taiwan has the aspiration to step up and impress the world. We have the capability to hold world-class orchid exhibitions," Chen said.
Chen also said that Taiwan's entry into the WTO did not pose a threat to the nation's agricultural industries. Citing government statistics, production in the agricultural sector last year grew by 7 percent, reaching NT$377 billion. Also, last year, the total value of agricultural exports grew by 11.7 percent to US$3.52 billion.
"We've introduced advanced growing methods for not only orchids but also other agricultural products. In the last half century, innovative methods have been adopted to ensure Taiwan's competitiveness in the global market. We will keep doing so," the president said.
The 16-day exhibition will run through April 10. It will feature a host of activities, including an academic conference, workshops, and games will be held at the site. More than 20,000 orchids of difference types from 16 countries will be displayed at the exhibition.
"We estimate that the combination of tourism and sales in the orchid industry will increase annual production 10-fold within five years," said Tainan County Commissioner Su Huan-chih (蘇煥智).
Su also said that, since Taiwan entered the WTO in 2002, orchid growing has become competitive for the nation. Taiwan annually exports US$58 million worth of plants and flowers. Of that amount, US$30 million worth is orchids.
Foreign interest
Su said that Taiwan Orchid Plantation is an ideal place which satisfies foreign purchasers. Most overseas buyers are usually interested in different kinds of orchids grown in Taiwan. Currently, the butterfly orchid is the most popular type for overseas buyers.
Su said that the plantation would further help the nation's orchid industry by integrating resources from the biotechnology industry. Rural Tainan County is a one of Taiwan's foremost places to grow orchids, he added.
Taiwanese were praised for their composure after a video filmed by Taiwanese tourists capturing the moment a magnitude 7.5 earthquake struck Japan’s Aomori Prefecture went viral on social media. The video shows a hotel room shaking violently amid Monday’s quake, with objects falling to the ground. Two Taiwanese began filming with their mobile phones, while two others held the sides of a TV to prevent it from falling. When the shaking stopped, the pair calmly took down the TV and laid it flat on a tatami mat, the video shows. The video also captured the group talking about the safety of their companions bathing
US climber Alex Honnold is to attempt to scale Taipei 101 without a rope and harness in a live Netflix special on Jan. 24, the streaming platform announced on Wednesday. Accounting for the time difference, the two-hour broadcast of Honnold’s climb, called Skyscraper Live, is to air on Jan. 23 in the US, Netflix said in a statement. Honnold, 40, was the first person ever to free solo climb the 900m El Capitan rock formation in Yosemite National Park — a feat that was recorded and later made into the 2018 documentary film Free Solo. Netflix previewed Skyscraper Live in October, after videos
Starting on Jan. 1, YouBike riders must have insurance to use the service, and a six-month trial of NT$5 coupons under certain conditions would be implemented to balance bike shortages, a joint statement from transportation departments across Taipei, New Taipei City and Taoyuan announced yesterday. The rental bike system operator said that coupons would be offered to riders to rent bikes from full stations, for riders who take out an electric-assisted bike from a full station, and for riders who return a bike to an empty station. All riders with YouBike accounts are automatically eligible for the program, and each membership account
A classified Pentagon-produced, multiyear assessment — the Overmatch brief — highlighted unreported Chinese capabilities to destroy US military assets and identified US supply chain choke points, painting a disturbing picture of waning US military might, a New York Times editorial published on Monday said. US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth’s comments in November last year that “we lose every time” in Pentagon-conducted war games pitting the US against China further highlighted the uncertainty about the US’ capability to intervene in the event of a Chinese invasion of Taiwan. “It shows the Pentagon’s overreliance on expensive, vulnerable weapons as adversaries field cheap, technologically
RSS