Taiwanese food suppliers won more than 50 Superior Taste Awards in Belgium yesterday, largely for tea products and snacks.
The Superior Taste Award competition, organized by the International Taste and Quality Institute, is an annual contest open to food and drink producers catering to retail customers.
A total of 38 Taiwanese companies with 60 products participated in the event, competing against more than 900 food suppliers with 1,500 products.
Photo: CNA
Taiwanese companies won 18 “three star” prizes, given to “exceptional products” with scores of 90 or higher, 22 “two-star” awards for “remarkable products” and 11 “one-star” awards for “notable tasting products,” according to the competition’s organizers.
Taiwanese prize winners held a Republic of China flag at the award ceremony and shouted: “Taiwan No. 1.”
Chang San-wo (張三我), a tea farmer from Nantou County, who led the Taiwanese delegation at the competition, said the number of tea products from Taiwan competing in this year’s contest was double the number of last year, adding that the products won 10 three-star awards this year.
Chang’s Highland Four Season Tea was one of the three-star winners this year.
Another tea farmer from Nantou, Lai Yung-fu (賴永富), also won a three-star award for his oolong tea.
Nantou is known for its tea that thrives on the county’s hilly terrain and good water quality, Lai said, adding that he was grateful that his home county had such a good natural environment for growing tea.
Food processor Zhen He Food Co was among the winners, taking three prizes for its crisp chili snacks.
The company’s head, Lee Wei-chen (李威辰), said the snacks were simply a way of using up dried chilies left over from the production of kimchi, or pickled cabbage, adding that winning international acclaim came as a surprise for him.
POLAM KOPITIAM CASE: Of the two people still in hospital, one has undergone a liver transplant and is improving, while the other is being evaluated for a liver transplant A fourth person has died from bongkrek acid poisoning linked to the Polam Kopitiam (寶林茶室) restaurant in Taipei’s Far Eastern Sogo Xinyi A13 Department Store, the Ministry of Health and Welfare said yesterday, as two other people remain seriously ill in hospital. The first death was reported on March 24. The man had been 39 years old and had eaten at the restaurant on March 22. As more cases of suspected food poisoning involving people who had eaten at the restaurant were reported by hospitals on March 26, the ministry and the Taipei Department of Health launched an investigation. The Food and
The long-awaited Taichung aquarium is expected to open next year after more than a decade of development. The building in Cingshui District (清水) is to feature a large ocean aquarium on the first floor, coral display area on the second floor, a jellyfish tank and Dajia River (大甲溪) basin display on the third, a river estuary display and restaurant on the fourth, and a cafe and garden on the fifth. As it is near Wuci Fishing Port (梧棲漁港), many are expecting the opening of the aquarium to bring more tourism to the harbor. Speaking at the city council on Monday, Taichung City Councilor
A fourth person has died in a food poisoning outbreak linked to the Xinyi (信義) branch of Malaysian restaurant chain Polam Kopitiam (寶林茶室) in Taipei, Deputy Minister of Health and Welfare Victor Wang (王必勝) said on Monday. It was the second fatality in three days, after another was announced on Saturday. The 40-year-old woman experienced multiple organ failure in the early hours on Monday, and the family decided not to undergo emergency resuscitation, Wang said. She initially showed signs of improvement after seeking medical treatment for nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, but her condition worsened due to an infection, he said. Two others who
Taiwanese should be mindful when visiting China, as Beijing in July is likely to tighten the implementation of policies on national security following the introduction of two regulations, a researcher said on Saturday. China on Friday unveiled the regulations governing the law enforcement and judicial activities of national security agencies. They would help crack down on “illegal” and “criminal” activities that Beijing considers to be endangering national security, according to reports by China’s state media. The definition of what constitutes a national security threat in China is vague, Taiwan Thinktank researcher Wu Se-chih (吳瑟致) said. The two procedural regulations are to provide Chinese