Thai mangosteens, which were banned in Taiwan for 16 years following an outbreak of fruit flies in the Southeast Asian country, are to be allowed in markets by mid-summer.
The ban is to be lifted because Thailand is complying with the government’s quarantine requirements, Council of Agriculture Deputy Minister Chen Junne-jih (陳駿季) said.
The government in 2003 stopped importing Thai mangosteens because of fruit fly problems there, but agricultural technology in Thailand has gradually improved and fruit growers now apply a vapor heat treatment to eliminate fruit flies, a process that meets Taiwan’s quarantine standard, Chen said.
The government is expected to allow Thai mangosteens into the country by as early as July after the council on April 26 issued the quarantine standard with a 60-day notice and comment period, said Chen Tzu-wei (陳子偉), an official with the council’s Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine.
The council would compile the opinions handed in by the public after the collection period expires, Chen Tzu-wei said.
Lifting the ban would not affect local farmers because they do not grow many mangosteens, he said.
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