Government officials and legislators yesterday gave support for the establishment of an agency to supervise and regulate the use of chemical additives and toxic substances in food processing and other industries.
A draft bill was reviewed at a meeting of the legislature’s Judiciary and Organic Laws and Statutes Committee, with the idea of setting up the body under the Environmental Protection Administration (EPA), after the draft was approved by the Executive Yuan earlier this month.
EPA Minister Lee Ying-yuan (李應元) said that if the bill passes the legislature, he hopes the agency, tentatively known as the Bureau of Toxicology and Chemical Substance Management, can begin operations by the end of next year.
“Taiwan has had several food scandals in recent years. Companies used illegal additives in food processing which caused much public anxiety about food safety, as well as harm to public health,” Lee said during the committee meeting.
“The food scandals have severely damaged our national reputation for international trade. In many instances, exports were sent back, leading to great financial losses’ “ he said.
“In one case, exports to 22 countries were returned. We believe it is time to set up this agency to ensure better management and control of our food safety standards,” Lee said.
Listing several national food scandals, Lee said authorities had uncovered companies using malachite green to preserve fish and shrimp, and street vendors adding industrial-grade magnesium carbonate powder to spices for Taiwanese-style fried chicken.
Both are illegal food additives in Taiwan. Malachite green is a known carcinogen and magnesium carbonate powder can have high levels of heavy metals, officials said.
The agency is to expand its database from 310 to about 3,000 substances used as food additives to strictly control chemical used and trace their flow from suppliers to downstream producers that can be accessed via “cloud.”
“It is important to trace controlled chemicals from their source and follow their journey from suppliers,” Lee added.
Lee said the agency’s initial annual budget would be NT$600 million (US$18.81 million), and it would have 80 employees, including a technical unit for hazardous materials control and an international unit for liaising with researchers and obtaining data in other countries.
The agency is also expected to establish a 24-hour hotline for reporting pollution and for advice on handling toxic materials and hazardous waste, with teams to monitor and trace the movement of vehicles transporting hazardous materials, as well as enforced checks on chemical additives used in the food industry.
Lee also said there is a need to consolidate mechanisms into one body for inter-department collaboration, compiling databases and other tasks, as the current regulations on chemicals and toxic substances cover 17 different laws and are divided between 11 government agencies and their divisions.
NUMBERS IMBALANCE: More than 4 million Taiwanese have visited China this year, while only about half a million Chinese have visited here Beijing has yet to respond to Taiwan’s requests for negotiation over matters related to the recovery of cross-strait tourism, the Tourism Administration said yesterday. Taiwan’s tourism authority issued the statement after Chinese-language daily the China Times reported yesterday that the government’s policy of banning group tours to China does not stop Taiwanese from visiting the country. As of October, more than 4.2 million had traveled to China this year, exceeding last year. Beijing estimated the number of Taiwanese tourists in China could reach 4.5 million this year. By contrast, only 500,000 Chinese tourists are expected in Taiwan, the report said. The report
Temperatures are forecast to drop steadily as a continental cold air mass moves across Taiwan, with some areas also likely to see heavy rainfall, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. From today through early tomorrow, a cold air mass would keep temperatures low across central and northern Taiwan, and the eastern half of Taiwan proper, with isolated brief showers forecast along Keelung’s north coast, Taipei and New Taipei City’s mountainous areas and eastern Taiwan, it said. Lows of 11°C to 15°C are forecast in central and northern Taiwan, Yilan County, and the outlying Kinmen and Lienchiang (Matsu) counties, and 14°C to 17°C
STEERING FAILURE: The first boat of its class is experiencing teething issues as it readies for acceptance by the navy, according to a recent story about rudder failure The Hai Kun (海鯤), the nation’s first locally built submarine, allegedly suffered a total failure of stern hydraulic systems during the second round of sea acceptance trials on June 26, and sailors were forced to manually operate the X-rudder to turn the submarine and return to port, news Web site Mirror Daily reported yesterday. The report said that tugboats following the Hai Kun assisted the submarine in avoiding collisions with other ships due to the X-rudder malfunctioning. At the time of the report, the submarine had completed its trials and was scheduled to begin diving and surfacing tests in shallow areas. The X-rudder,
DEMAND: The government should enact regulations in line with Austria and Germany to incorporate vegan nutrition into school meals, an advocate said More than 1,000 people yesterday marched in Taipei to promote veganism, calling for legislation to incorporate vegan diets into school lunches and the national net zero emissions program. Participants gathered on Ketagalan Boulevard in front of the Presidential Office Building for the march, which was organized by the Vegan Action Network (VAN). Former ambassador to Chad Chiu Chung-jen (邱仲仁), actor Yankee Yang (楊子儀) and actress Cindy Lien (連俞涵) attended the event. VAN member Marianne Chao (趙梅君) said that the campaign aimed to urge the government to promote vegan diets across schools and government agencies via legislation and national policies, which would help build
RSS