Carry-on luggage from Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia and Brunei is to be checked at airports starting today, the Council of Agriculture said yesterday, as it continues stepping up quarantine measures to prevent African swine fever from entering the nation
All travelers from the four countries on direct flights to Taiwan would be affected, the council said.
Before the four countries were added, the council’s list of high-risk countries consisted of China (including Hong Kong and Macau), Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, North Korea, South Korea, Russia and the Philippines, according to the Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine.
All carry-on luggage from the listed countries would be scanned using X-ray machines, the bureau said.
The 16 operational X-ray machines and the staff at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport would be able to handle the additional scans, it said.
At other airports, custom officials and sniffer dogs would also help check carry-on and check-in luggage, the bureau said.
As of yesterday, Russia, China, Mongolia, Vietnam, Cambodia, North Korea, Laos and Myanmar have reported outbreaks of African swine fever, while the other countries are listed for preventive measures, it said.
Since its first outbreak of African swine fever in August last year, China has reported 160 cases of infection, with the latest one confirmed in Hong Kong on Wednesday, bureau data showed yesterday.
Meanwhile, Vietnam, which identified its first outbreak in February, has reported 6,083 cases, leading the bureau to suspect that China has been underreporting the effects of the disease.
The bureau also called on Taiwanese travelers returning from abroad to refrain from bringing any meat products through customs, especially mooncakes with meat stuffing, given the upcoming Mid-Autumn Festival on Friday next week.
Taiwan is mindful of the disease, as after more than two decades, it has been taken off the World Organization for Animal Health’s list of areas affected by foot-and-mouth disease, allowing it to export fresh pork again.
Taiwan is to have nine extended holidays next year, led by a nine-day Lunar New Year break, the Cabinet announced yesterday. The nine-day Lunar New Year holiday next year matches the length of this year’s holiday, which featured six extended holidays. The increase in extended holidays is due to the Act on the Implementation of Commemorative and Festival Holidays (紀念日及節日實施條例), which was passed early last month with support from the opposition Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party. Under the new act, the day before Lunar New Year’s Eve is also a national holiday, and Labor Day would no longer be limited
COMMITMENTS: The company had a relatively low renewable ratio at 56 percent and did not have any goal to achieve 100 percent renewable energy, the report said Pegatron Corp ranked the lowest among five major final assembly suppliers in progressing toward Apple Inc’s commitment to be 100 percent carbon neutral by 2030, a Greenpeace East Asia report said yesterday. While Apple has set the goal of using 100 percent renewable energy across its entire business, supply chain and product lifecycle by 2030, carbon emissions from electronics manufacturing are rising globally due to increased energy consumption, it said. Given that carbon emissions from its supply chain accounted for more than half of its total emissions last year, Greenpeace East Asia evaluated the green transition performance of Apple’s five largest final
Taiwan is to extend its visa-waiver program for Philippine passport holders for another year, starting on Aug. 1, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said on Friday. Lin made the announcement during a reception in Taipei marking the 127th anniversary of Philippine independence and the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the Manila Economic and Cultural Office (MECO) in Taiwan, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. The decision reflected Taiwan’s commitment to deepening exchanges with the Philippines, the statement cited Lin as saying, adding that it was a key partner under the New Southbound Policy launched in 2016. Lin also expressed hope
Temperatures in New Taipei City’s Sindian District (新店) climbed past 37°C yesterday, as the Central Weather Administration (CWA) issued heat alerts for 16 municipalities, warning the public of intense heat expected across Taiwan. The hottest location in Taiwan was in Sindian, where the mercury reached 37.5°C at about 2pm, according to CWA data. Taipei’s Shilin District (士林) recorded a temperature of 37.4°C at noon, Taitung County’s Jinfeng Township (金峰) at 12:50 pm logged a temperature of 37.4°C and Miaoli County’s Toufen Township (頭份) reached 36.7°C at 11:40am, the CWA said. The weather agency yesterday issued a yellow level information notice for Taipei, New
RSS