Premier Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) reiterated his defense of the government’s decision to lift the ban on US beef, saying that it would not allow internal organs banned by Canada and Europe to enter Taiwan.
During an inspection trip to Nantou, Wu denied that the government’s beef import policy had been inconsistent, saying it would require that imports meet the World Organization for Animal Health’s standards.
“We will not accept products banned in the US, Canada and Europe,” Wu said, referring to parts of the cow such as the brain, eyes, skull and spinal cord.
PHOTO: CNA
He said the government’s standard would be as strict as those of the US, the EU, Canada and South Korea.
Importers would also have to obtain product liability insurance to protect consumers’ rights.
Wu has been on the defensive since the Department of Health (DOH) announced on Friday that US beef would have greater access to Taiwan’s market after officials reached a consensus in Washington on Thursday.
Under the new accord, US bone-in beef, ground beef, intestines, brains, spinal cords and processed beef from cattle younger than 30 months that have not been contaminated with “specific risk” materials can be imported as of Nov. 10.
“Specific risk” materials are defined in the protocol as the brain, skull, eyes, trigeminal ganglia, spinal cord, vertebral column and dorsal root ganglia from cattle 30 months of age and older, or the tonsils and the distal ileum of the small intestine from all cattle.
At present, only imports of US boneless beef from cattle younger than 30 months that contain no specified risk materials are allowed.
The department’s announcement was immediately criticized by lawmakers across party lines as well as health care professionals.
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus refused to endorse the new policy, saying that the department kept the caucus in the dark about the announcement.
The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) caucus accused the government of trading the public’s health for its political interest.
It also threatened to boycott the review of the central government’s budget request for the next fiscal year.
Lawmakers questioned the idea of product liability insurance, saying that the measure was meaningless.
KMT caucus deputy secretary-general Lin Hung-chih (林鴻池) said preventing Taiwanese from contracting mad cow disease was more important.
DPP Legislator Huang Sue-ying (黃淑英), a member of the Social Welfare and Environmental Hygiene Committee, said the measure could not guarantee there would be no widespread outbreak of mad cow disease in Taiwan.
DPP caucus whip Wang Sing-nan (王幸男) lambasted the decision, saying public health concerns had been ignored and threatened to boycott the legislative debate on next year’s budget unless the tougher beef ban was reimposed.
Medical professionals slammed the decision, saying it ignored professional medical opinion.
“We shouldn’t lift the restrictions; we don’t have the necessary protective measures,” said Chen Shun-sheng (陳順勝), a professor of Neurology at Chang Gung University. “Professionally, we cannot accept this decision.”
Chen said Taiwan didn’t have the medical facilities to handle an outbreak of mad cow disease.
Taiwan would have to send patients with BSE to the UK and the US if an outbreak occurred, he said.
The government’s research funding into prions, the root cause behind Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) or mad cow disease, has been woefully inadequate, he said.
Chen proposed that the government follow restrictions instituted by Japan in 2006 that limit the import of beef to those from cattle less than 20 months of age.
British government statistics show there have been no confirmed BSE cases in cattle less than 20 months of age.
The Foundation of Medical Professionals Alliance in Taiwan also expressed concern that the decision would place the nation in the same risk category as the US.
It said the move could hurt Taiwan’s burgeoning agricultural exports to countries such as China, which have tougher restrictions on US beef.
Wu Shuh-min (吳樹民), president of the alliance, criticized the government for ignoring the welfare of its citizens.
“I think it’s clear that the decision did not originate from the Department of Health. I don’t think asking the health minister to step down will solve the problem,” Wu said when asked who he thought should take responsibility for the new policy.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY AFP
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