Taoyuan County boasts many industrial and commercial activities, with two-fifths of the nation’s top 500 companies having established factories in the county, and as tourism has grown in recent years, with visitors bringing a big economic boost to the county, the local government says it has been providing assistance to local companies to help them transform their factories into tourist attractions.
Among the factories that have been transformed are those owned by Hey Song Corp, Formosa Plastics Corp, I-Mei Foods Co, Coca-Cola Co and Kimlan Foods Co.
In October last year, Taiwan Tobacco & Liquor Corp’s Linkou Brewery in Guishan Township (龜山) was listed by the Ministry of Economic Affairs as one of the nation’s top five tourism factories.
Photo courtesy of the Taoyuan County Government’s Economic Development Bureau
The ministry also set up an advertising campaign at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport to help increase the visibility of the county’s Kuo Yuan Ye Museum of Cake and Pastry, which it said is one of the best factories for international tourists to visit.
Taoyuan County Government officials said some of the tourism factories are focused on introducing the company’s history or culture, such as the Formosa Plastics Group Museum, which showcases the group’s development and its late founder, Wang Yung-ching (王永慶).
Other museums, such as big-name brands Hey Song, Coca-Cola, Kimlan and Kuang-chuan Co, mainly display popular items from “the good old days,” such as Hey Song’s glass bottled soda, the officials said.
Action Electronics Co’s Action Museum, for example, displays electronic products that reflect the development of the industry in Taiwan over the past 30 years.
Meanwhile, other tourism factories, such as Hunya Foods Co’s Republic of Chocolate, the Kuo Yuan Ye Museum of Cake and Pastry, White-Wood-House Brand Discovery Gallery, I-Mei’s Ecological and Lifestyle Park, Les Enphants and Xin-Peng-Lai Foods Co’s Tofu Culture Center, allow visitors to participate in the making of food or other products to take home as souvenirs, the officials added.
The local government used “Made in Taoyuan No. 1” as its slogan to promote the county’s tourism factories in 2011, before adopting the slogan “Taoyuan Tourism Factories Prosperous Wonderland” in 2012 to highlight that the factories have been transformed into amusement parks.
According to government statistics, more than 2 million people visited the factories in 2012 and last year, bringing in an estimated NT$600 million (US$19.9 million) a year, while the successful transformation of the factories has also shined a light on the county’s traditional industries.
The officials said that due to the success of the project, more companies are eager to transform their factories. For example, Me-de Food Co’s factory in Bade District (八德市) recently held an opening ceremony and was certified by the Ministry of Economic Affairs as the county’s 23rd tourism factory.
US President Donald Trump said "it’s up to" Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) what China does on Taiwan, but that he would be "very unhappy" with a change in the "status quo," the New York Times said in an interview published yesterday. Xi "considers it to be a part of China, and that’s up to him what he’s going to be doing," Trump told the newspaper on Wednesday. "But I’ve expressed to him that I would be very unhappy if he did that, and I don’t think he’ll do that," he added. "I hope he doesn’t do that." Trump made the comments in
NOT AN OPENING: Trump’s violation of international law does not affect China’s consideration in attacking Taiwan; Beijing lacks capability, not precedent, an official said Taiwanese officials see the US’ capture of the president of Venezuela as a powerful deterrent to Beijing’s aggression and a timely reminder of the US’ ability to defeat militaries equipped with Chinese-made weapons. The strikes that toppled Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro signaled to authoritarian leaders, including Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), US President Donald Trump’s willingness to use military might for international affairs core to US interests, one senior official in Taipei’s security circle said. That reassured Taiwan, the person said. Taipei has also dismissed the idea that Trump’s apparent violation of international law could embolden Beijing, said the official, who was not
A cold surge advisory was today issued for 18 cities and counties across Taiwan, with temperatures of below 10°C forecast during the day and into tonight, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. New Taipei City, Taipei, Taoyuan and Hsinchu, Miaoli and Yilan counties are expected to experience sustained temperatures of 10°C or lower, the CWA said. Temperatures are likely to temporarily drop below 10°C in most other areas, except Taitung, Pingtung, Penghu and Lienchiang (Matsu) counties, CWA data showed. The cold weather is being caused by a strong continental cold air mass, combined with radiative cooling, a process in which heat escapes from
Snow this morning fell on Alishan for the first time in seven years, as a strong continental cold air mass sent temperatures plunging across Taiwan, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The Alishan weather station, located at an elevation of about 2,200m in central Taiwan, recorded snowfall from 8:55am to 9:15am, when the temperature dropped to about 1°C, the CWA said. With increased moisture and low temperatures in the high-altitude Alishan area, the conditions were favorable for snow, CWA forecaster Tsai Yi-chi (蔡伊其) said. The last time snow fell at the Alishan weather station was on Jan. 10, 2018, while graupel fell there