The government would move to lift a ban on a feed additive that has driven a wedge between Taiwan and the US only after the international community sets a permissible level of the drug in meat, the Department of Health (DOH) said.
“To Taiwan, this is a problem involving economic, medical, agricultural and technical issues, and the DOH will not relax existing restrictions on the drug’s use before an internationally recognized level is set and before a consensus is reached among related government agencies,” Deputy Health Minister Hsiao Mei-ling (蕭美玲) said after a group of US lawmakers pressed Taiwan in a letter to President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) on Thursday to remove the ban to prevent further damage to bilateral trade ties.
BANNED
Hsiao reiterated that the use of ractopamine was fully banned by the Council of Agriculture (COA) and the DOH was therefore obligated not to allow any meat products sold locally to contain any traces of the substance.
“The DOH will set a minimum allowable ractopamine residue level for meat products if the COA decides to lift the ban on the drug, which depends on the result of an upcoming international meeting,” she said.
Kang Jaw-jou (康照洲), director general of the COA’s Food and Drug Administration, said the Codex Alimentarius Commission was slated to call a conference in July, at which it might announce an internationally recognized level for ractopamine residue.
Some US beef products were taken off local supermarket shelves last month after they were found to contain trace amounts of ractopamine — a drug promoting leanness in meat — which prompted the US to postpone a trade meeting with Taiwan.
“The scientific evidence is clear that US beef is safe and that there is no food-safety justification for these actions,” AFP reported, quoting the letter made public by Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus. “We urge you to take prompt corrective measures to restore and avoid further damage to our bilateral trade relations.”
Taiwan’s Swine Association, however, voiced its objection to the idea of lifting the ban on the animal drug, citing the eating habits of local residents.
“Taiwanese people consume a lot of internal organs and ribs, which contain much higher ractopamine levels than in the actual meat. Therefore, we are totally against a removal of the ban,” association head Pan Lien-chou (潘連周) said.
‘WHY SHOULD WE?’
Local pig farmers are banned from using the drug, so the same regulation should be applied to foreign meat products to safeguard the health of Taiwan’s people, Pan said.
“Locally produced pork is of higher quality because it cannot contain any ractopamine residue. Why do we have to lower our standards?” he asked. “China and the European Union also ban the use of the drug.”
Taiwan is to have nine extended holidays next year, led by a nine-day Lunar New Year break, the Cabinet announced yesterday. The nine-day Lunar New Year holiday next year matches the length of this year’s holiday, which featured six extended holidays. The increase in extended holidays is due to the Act on the Implementation of Commemorative and Festival Holidays (紀念日及節日實施條例), which was passed early last month with support from the opposition Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party. Under the new act, the day before Lunar New Year’s Eve is also a national holiday, and Labor Day would no longer be limited
Taiwan is to extend its visa-waiver program for Philippine passport holders for another year, starting on Aug. 1, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said on Friday. Lin made the announcement during a reception in Taipei marking the 127th anniversary of Philippine independence and the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the Manila Economic and Cultural Office (MECO) in Taiwan, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. The decision reflected Taiwan’s commitment to deepening exchanges with the Philippines, the statement cited Lin as saying, adding that it was a key partner under the New Southbound Policy launched in 2016. Lin also expressed hope
Costa Rica sent a group of intelligence officials to Taiwan for a short-term training program, the first time the Central American country has done so since the countries ended official diplomatic relations in 2007, a Costa Rican media outlet reported last week. Five officials from the Costa Rican Directorate of Intelligence and Security last month spent 23 days in Taipei undergoing a series of training sessions focused on national security, La Nacion reported on Friday, quoting unnamed sources. The Costa Rican government has not confirmed the report. The Chinese embassy in Costa Rica protested the news, saying in a statement issued the same
Temperatures in New Taipei City’s Sindian District (新店) climbed past 37°C yesterday, as the Central Weather Administration (CWA) issued heat alerts for 16 municipalities, warning the public of intense heat expected across Taiwan. The hottest location in Taiwan was in Sindian, where the mercury reached 37.5°C at about 2pm, according to CWA data. Taipei’s Shilin District (士林) recorded a temperature of 37.4°C at noon, Taitung County’s Jinfeng Township (金峰) at 12:50 pm logged a temperature of 37.4°C and Miaoli County’s Toufen Township (頭份) reached 36.7°C at 11:40am, the CWA said. The weather agency yesterday issued a yellow level information notice for Taipei, New
RSS