A package of Chinese crispy sausage apparently carried by passengers on a ferry from China’s Fujian Province to Kinmen was contaminated with African Swine Fever (ASF) virus, the Council of Agriculture Deputy Minister Huang Chin-cheng (黃金城) said on Wednesday.
The sausage made by WH Group — the largest meat producer in China — was discovered on Thursday last week in a garbage can at Shuitou Port, Huang said.
It had apparently discarded by whoever brought it, and was sent for testing to the Animal Health Research Institute as part of the government’s effort to keep the ASF virus out of Taiwan, he said.
Pork and pork products from WH Group have been repeatedly found to contain the ASF virus since the disease was first reported in China on Aug. 3, he said.
The disease has since spread to 13 provinces, cities and territories in China.
The Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine on Aug. 27 stepped up quarantine checks at seaports and airports to prevent the disease from entering Taiwan.
There is no cure for ASF.
Out of 690 items examined since the quarantine checks were beefed-up, the suspect sausage package was the first time ASF has been found in a meat product brought into the nation by travelers, bureau Director-General Feng Hai-tung (馮海東) said.
People caught smuggling meat products from countries and areas affected by ASF or by foot-and-mouth disease can face a fine of up to NT$15,000, although a bill before the legislature seeks to increase the fine to NT$300,000, Huang said.
NEW AGREEMENT: Malaysia approved imports last year after nearly two years of negotiations and inspections to meet quarantine requirements, officials said Up to 3.6 tonnes of pomeloes from Taiwan cleared Malaysian customs on Friday, in the first shipment of Taiwanese pomeloes to Malaysia. Taiwan-grown pomeloes are popular in domestic and overseas markets for their tender and juicy taste, the Ministry of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency said. The fruit is already exported to Japan, Canada, Hong Kong, Singapore and the Philippines, it added. The agency began applying for access to the Malaysian market in 2023, compiling data on climate suitability, pests and diseases, and post-harvest handling, while also engaging in nearly two years of negotiations with Malaysian authorities and submitting supplementary
PEAK MONTHS: Data showed that on average 25 to 27 typhoons formed in the Pacific and South China seas annually, with about four forming per month in July and October One of three tropical depressions in the Pacific strengthened into a typhoon yesterday afternoon, while two others are expected to become typhoons by today, Central Weather Administration (CWA) forecaster Lee Ming-hsiang (李名翔) said yesterday. The outer circulation of Tropical Depression No. 20, now Typhoon Mitag, has brought light rain to Hualien, Taitung and areas in the south, Lee said, adding that as of 2pm yesterday, Mitag was moving west-northwest at 16kph, but is not expected to directly affect Taiwan. It was possible that Tropical Depression No. 21 would become a typhoon as soon as last night, he said. It was moving in a
Tigerair Taiwan and China Airlines (CAL) today announced that several international flights were canceled or rescheduled due to Typhoon Ragasa. The Central Weather Administration (CWA) has maintained sea and land warnings for the typhoon. Its storm circle reached the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春半島) on Taiwan's southern tip at 11am today. Tigerair Taiwan said it canceled Monday's IT551/IT552 Taoyuan-Da Nang, IT606/IT607 Taoyuan-Busan and IT602 Taoyuan-Seoul Incheon flights. Tomorrow, cancelations include IT603 Seoul Incheon-Taoyuan, as well as flights between Taoyuan and Sapporo, Osaka, Tokyo Narita, Okinawa, Fukuoka, Saga, Tokyo Haneda, Nagoya, Asahikawa and Jeju. On Wednesday, the IT321/IT322 Kaohsiung-Macau round-trip would also be canceled. CAL announced that today's
Three tropical depressions yesterday intensified into tropical storms, with one likely to affect Taiwan as a typhoon, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The three storms, named Mitag, Ragasa and Neoguri, were designated as storms No. 17 to 19 for this year, the CWA said. Projected routes indicate that Ragasa is most likely to affect Taiwan, it said. As of 2am today, Ragasa was 1,370km east-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻) on the southernmost tip of Taiwan. It was moving west-northwest before turning northwest, slowing from 11kph to 6kph, the agency said. A sea warning for Ragasa is unlikely before Sunday afternoon, but its outer rim
RSS