The People First Party’s (PFP) legislative caucus yesterday said the nation’s food safety would fall apart if the incoming administration allows imports of pork containing ractopamine residue.
Party lawmakers also said a proposal to allow imports, but maintain the ban on domestic use of the leanness-enhancing additive, would be deceptive.
PFP caucus convener Lee Hung-chun (李鴻鈞) said that remarks last month by Council of Agriculture minister-designate Tsao Chi-hung (曹啟鴻) about being unable to avoid imports of US pork containing the additive were inappropriate, as they were “showing your cards before negotiations began” to join the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement.
Tsao said that there would be nothing he could do to stop imports of US pork containing ractopamine because Taiwan is a small economy that does not have the leverage to refuse such imports in a globalized world.
The WHO’s Codex Alimentarius Commission in 2012 adopted maximum residue levels of ractopamine in animal tissue, but the decision was reached via a vote won by a fragile majority — 69 votes for and 67 against — and it was wrong for President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) administration to ease the ban on imports of US beef containing ractopamine residue, Lee said.
“How many countries represented by the 69 votes that approved meat with ractopamine residue have similar dietary habits as Taiwan,” Lee said.
“The EU and China do not allow ractopamine residue in meat,” he said.
The nation’s self-sufficiency rate in pork has reached more than 90 percent, which means that imported pork is likely to end up in school lunches, restaurants and processed meat products, Lee said.
PFP Legislator Chen Yi-chieh (陳怡潔) said the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) criticized the Ma administration for being “incompetent” when it lifted the ban on US beef imports, so the incoming DPP administration would be “even more incompetent” if it allows such pork imports, because Taiwanese eat more pork than beef.
He questioned whether Taiwanese farmers would be allowed to use ractopamine if pork products with residue of the drug are allowed to be imported, adding that the policies for beef and pork must be separate to protect Taiwanese pig farmers and the public health.
PFP Legislator Chou Chen Hsiu-hsia (周陳秀霞) said allowing imports of pork with ractopamine residue, but prohibiting domestic use of the additive would be deceptive and unfair to farmers.
The DPP administration must not use the public’s health as a bargaining chip for international trade negotiations, Chou said.
Polls show that more than 70 percent of the public are against imports of pork containing ractopamine residue, so the DPP should not sacrifice the nation’s food safety for trade negotiations start, the lawmaker said.
The disruption of 941 flights in and out of Taiwan due to China’s large-scale military exercises was no accident, but rather the result of a “quasi-blockade” used to simulate creating the air and sea routes needed for an amphibious landing, a military expert said. The disruptions occurred on Tuesday and lasted about 10 hours as China conducted live-fire drills in the Taiwan Strait. The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) said the exercises affected 857 international flights and 84 domestic flights, affecting more than 100,000 travelers. Su Tzu-yun (蘇紫雲), a research fellow at the government-sponsored Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said the air
Taiwan is to commence mass production of the Tien Kung (天弓, “Sky Bow”) III, IV and V missiles by the second quarter of this year if the legislature approves the government’s NT$1.25 trillion (US$39.78 billion) special defense budget, an official said yesterday. Commenting on condition of anonymity, a defense official with knowledge of the matter said that the advanced systems are expected to provide crucial capabilities against ballistic and cruise missiles for the proposed “T-Dome,” an advanced, multi-layered air defense network. The Tien Kung III is an air defense missile with a maximum interception altitude of 35km. The Tien Kung IV and V
Trips for more than 100,000 international and domestic air travelers could be disrupted as China launches a military exercise around Taiwan today, Taiwan’s Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) said yesterday. The exercise could affect nearly 900 flights scheduled to enter the Taipei Flight Information Region (FIR) during the exercise window, it added. A notice issued by the Chinese Civil Aviation Administration showed there would be seven temporary zones around the Taiwan Strait which would be used for live-fire exercises, lasting from 8am to 6pm today. All aircraft are prohibited from entering during exercise, it says. Taipei FIR has 14 international air routes and
Taiwan lacks effective and cost-efficient armaments to intercept rockets, making the planned “T-Dome” interception system necessary, two experts said on Tuesday. The concerns were raised after China’s military fired two waves of rockets during live-fire drills around Taiwan on Tuesday, part of two-day exercises code-named “Justice Mission 2025.” The first wave involved 17 rockets launched at 9am from Pingtan in China’s Fujian Province, according to Lieutenant General Hsieh Jih-sheng (謝日升) of the Office of the Deputy Chief of the General Staff for Intelligence at the Ministry of National Defense. Those rockets landed 70 nautical miles (129.6km) northeast of Keelung without flying over Taiwan,
RSS