Beef imported from Japan, Sweden and the Netherlands is to be supplementary to the nation’s beef industry, rather than dealing a blow to it, Council of Agriculture officials said yesterday.
The Ministry of Health and Welfare on Monday announced plans to allow beef imports from the three nations in the near future.
The announcement raised concerns about the impact on the domestic cattle industry.
The council said that the opening would provide more options for customers because imported beef would be better quality.
Beef imports would not affect the domestic market because the market segments are different, Department of Animal Industry Deputy Director Wang Chung-shu (王忠恕) said.
If there is any affect, beef imported from the US would be the first target, he added.
The self-sufficiency rate of beef in Taiwan is about 6 percent, while the other 94 percent comes from other nations, mainly the US, Australia and New Zealand, the council said.
Dairy products are in higher demand than beef products, Wang said.
About 110,000 dairy cows and 35,000 beef cattle are being raised in Taiwan, but dairy cattle are also consumed and the quality is usually worse than that of beef cattle, Wang said.
To help increase the nation’s self-sufficiency in beef production, the council introduced 200 pregnant Aberdeen Angus cows from Australia in April.
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