The Chiayi County Government plans to introduce a certification emblem for its famous tea grown in the greater Alishan (阿里山) area. The emblem is meant to help consumers, particularly Chinese tourists, differentiate between the genuine product and falsely labeled tea, a county government official said yesterday.
Lien Chung-yung (連忠勇), director of the county government’s agricultural affairs bureau, said his bureau was poised to advocate the certification system to ensure that customers obtain the high-end tea produced in the mountainous Alishan area and that farmers earn reasonable profits.
Lien said that the county, in conjunction with prize-winning tea growers from contests sponsored by the local government, will begin later this year to use an anti-forgery emblem to certify the farmers’ brands.
SPECIAL SWAB
Customers who purchase genuine Alishan tea will find a cotton swab containing a special liquid inside the tea package that they can use to verify the authenticity of the product, Lien said.
If the blue color on the emblem turns dark red after it is swabbed with the liquid, the tea would be authentic, he said.
The emblem adopted by the Chiayi County Government was developed by a Taiwanese biotechnology firm, he said.
Lien said his bureau would begin advocating the system among tea growers affiliated with local farmers’ associations to help stamp out the sale of fake tea and maintain the reputation of products genuinely grown in the Alishan area.
PROTECTING TOURISTS
Tea planted and produced in Alishan — a high-elevation resort area that is one of the most popular scenic spots for Chinese tourists — has long enjoyed widespread popularity because of its unique aroma and high quality.
However, some tea shops have been found to sell low-end tea — from other areas in Taiwan or from foreign countries — disguised as Alishan tea to rack up extra profit. The sellers were found to be targeting Chinese tourists.
Alain Robert, known as the "French Spider-Man," praised Alex Honnold as exceptionally well-prepared after the US climber completed a free solo ascent of Taipei 101 yesterday. Robert said Honnold's ascent of the 508m-tall skyscraper in just more than one-and-a-half hours without using safety ropes or equipment was a remarkable achievement. "This is my life," he said in an interview conducted in French, adding that he liked the feeling of being "on the edge of danger." The 63-year-old Frenchman climbed Taipei 101 using ropes in December 2004, taking about four hours to reach the top. On a one-to-10 scale of difficulty, Robert said Taipei 101
Nipah virus infection is to be officially listed as a category 5 notifiable infectious disease in Taiwan in March, while clinical treatment guidelines are being formulated, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday. With Nipah infections being reported in other countries and considering its relatively high fatality rate, the centers on Jan. 16 announced that it would be listed as a notifiable infectious disease to bolster the nation’s systematic early warning system and increase public awareness, the CDC said. Bangladesh reported four fatal cases last year in separate districts, with three linked to raw date palm sap consumption, CDC Epidemic Intelligence
Two Taiwanese prosecutors were questioned by Chinese security personnel at their hotel during a trip to China’s Henan Province this month, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. The officers had personal information on the prosecutors, including “when they were assigned to their posts, their work locations and job titles,” MAC Deputy Minister and spokesman Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) said. On top of asking about their agencies and positions, the officers also questioned the prosecutors about the Cross-Strait Joint Crime-Fighting and Judicial Mutual Assistance Agreement, a pact that serves as the framework for Taiwan-China cooperation on combating crime and providing judicial assistance, Liang
US climber Alex Honnold left Taiwan this morning a day after completing a free-solo ascent of Taipei 101, a feat that drew cheers from onlookers and gained widespread international attention. Honnold yesterday scaled the 101-story skyscraper without a rope or safety harness. The climb — the highest urban free-solo ascent ever attempted — took just more than 90 minutes and was streamed live on Netflix. It was covered by major international news outlets including CNN, the New York Times, the Guardian and the Wall Street Journal. As Honnold prepared to leave Taiwan today, he attracted a crowd when he and his wife, Sanni,
RSS