A group of lawmakers across party lines yesterday filed an appeal with the Taipei High Administrative Court, asking the government to suspend importation of US beef. The lawmakers also criticized the government for lifting the ban in the first place, saying it showed a disregard for public health.
The Taiwan Solidarity Union's Lai Shin-yuan (
After the press conference, they submitted an appeal asking the court to issue an injunction against allowing the importation of US beef amid reports of a third case of mad cow disease.
US Department of Agriculture Chief Veterinary Officer John Clifford yesterday confirmed a cow in the state of Alabama had tested positive for mad cow disease.
Clifford said though that "human and animal health in the United States is protected by a system of interlocking safeguards, and that we remain very confident in the safety of US beef."
Clifford's statements came as a press release issued via the American Institute in Taiwan yesterday.
Clifford said that the animal in question "did not enter the human food or animal feed chains" and promised that the US authorities would continue to be transparent in sharing information with the public and international trading partners about the ongoing epidemiological investigation.
"The Department of Health should stop importing US beef immediately, and it should order that all US beef be taken off the market," the lawmakers said.
The lawmakers also said Health Minister Hou Sheng-mou (
"The percentage of US cattle selected for testing is very limited at less than 1 percent. How can the government ensure that the imported beef products did not come from cows that might not have yet shown symptoms of the disease?" Lei said.
Lai said that the government has been reluctant to put a ban on US beef because of the conflict over the National Unification Council (NUC) and guidelines.
"The president's announcement of the scrapping of the NUC provoked the US government. That's why we have to import US beef to appease the US," Lai said.
Later yesterday, the health department issued a statement saying that there was no need to ban US beef immediately, since the animal involved in the latest case seemed to be 10 years old.
Taiwan has strict requirements that only meat from cows aged 30 months or younger can be imported, the department said.
Additional reporting by Chang Yun-ping
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