A joint effort by groups and individuals in Taiwan and abroad to prop up sales of pineapples after China announced a ban on imports of the fruit succeeded in just four days, the Council of Agriculture (COA) said yesterday.
China on Friday announced that it would suspend imports of Taiwanese pineapples starting on Monday, citing biosafety concerns.
Following the announcement, the council urged the public to assist farmers by purchasing pineapples, saying it hoped to sell 20,000 tonnes of the fruit domestically and 30,000 tonnes in exports.
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
“Domestic orders have already surpassed the total sold to China last year,” COA Minister Chen Chi-chung (陳吉仲) said, after announcing a total of 41,687 tonnes in domestic orders over the past four days.
The council had initially planned to boost domestic sales by pushing for the purchase of 20,000 tonnes of processed pineapples for use in various food products, but orders exceeded expectations following an outpouring of support from individuals, companies and activist groups.
More than 180 companies ordered 7,187 tonnes of whole pineapples; 19 companies ordered 15,000 tonnes of processed pineapples; 14 beverage shops ordered 4,500 tonnes; wholesalers and street market vendors ordered 10,000 tonnes; and exporters and overseas groups ordered 5,000 tonnes, the council said.
Photo: Wang Yi-sung, Taipei Times
“We are also looking at boosting exports to countries other than China. Last year, we sold US$131 million of fruit to China and US$52 million to all other countries combined,” Chen said.
At 71 percent of total fruit exports, sales to China last year dropped slightly from 2016, when 77 percent of Taiwan’s fruit exports went to China, he said.
Meanwhile, the Canadian and US representative offices in Taipei on Monday posted messages on social media with the tag #FreedomPineapple, and called on people to support Taiwan’s pineapple growers.
The Canadian Trade Office in Taipei (CTOT) posted a photograph on Facebook of staff members standing around two Hawaiian pizzas with the message: “At CTOT we love pineapples on our pizza, especially Taiwanese pineapples!”
The post says Hawaiian pizza is a Canadian invention, first made in 1962 by Canadian chef Sam Panopoulos at his restaurant in Chatham, Ontario.
Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Karen Yu (余宛如) commented on the post, thanking the CTOT for its support.
“Taiwanese pineapples have the taste of freedom. I believe you will enjoy them,” she wrote.
Additional reporting by Lu Yi-hsuan
SOLIDARITY: A group of European lawmakers condemned China’s aggressive moves, while the foreign minister of Lithuania said Taiwan ‘cannot become a second Ukraine’ A German parliamentary delegation would visit Taiwan in the first week of October, German lawmaker Holger Becker on Monday told visiting Democratic Progressive Party legislators Fan Yun (范雲) and Lin I-chin (林宜瑾) at the Bundestag in Berlin. Asked by Fan whether he is worried about possible reprisals from Beijing, such as banning him and his family from entering China, Becker said he is more interested in visiting Taiwan, as “now is the time for democracies to stand together.” Fan and Lin also met with German officials to exchange views on digital education and governance. Investing in digital infrastructure and protecting equal rights to
As China waged extensive military exercises off Taiwan, a group of US defense experts in Washington was focused on their own simulation of an eventual — but for now entirely hypothetical — US-China war over the nation. The unofficial what-if game is being conducted on the fifth floor of an office building not far from the White House, and it posits a US military response to a Chinese invasion in 2026. Even though the participants bring a US perspective, they are finding that a US-Taiwan victory, if there is one, could come at a huge cost. “The results are showing that under
WRONG TIMING: The delegation’s trip has not only disappointed Taiwanese, but could send a wrong message to the global community, Tsai Ing-wen said Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Vice Chairman Andrew Hsia (夏立言) yesterday left with a delegation for a trip to China, drawing fire for visiting at a time when Beijing has been conducting intensive military drills to pressure Taiwan. Before boarding, he told reporters that the delegation would be visiting Taiwanese communities and students in China, and possibly meet with Chinese officials. The Mainland Affairs Council on Tuesday night said that it was not the right time for political party members to visit China, as Beijing has been conducting military exercises since Thursday last week. President Tsai Ing- wen (蔡英文), chairperson of the Democratic
‘MILITARY PLAYBOOK’: It would have taken far longer for the PLA to put together the drills had they actually been in response to Nancy Pelosi’s visit, Joseph Wu said China is using military drills to prepare for an invasion of Taiwan, and its anger over US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit is just an excuse, Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) said yesterday. Speaking in English at a news conference in Taipei, Wu accused China of “gross violations of international law.” “China has used the drills in its military playbook to prepare for the invasion of Taiwan,” he said. “It is conducting large-scale military exercises and missile launches, as well as cyberattacks, disinformation and economic coercion, in an attempt to weaken public morale in Taiwan.” He said the Chinese
RSS