Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中) yesterday said that although all pig parts containing ractopamine could be imported from the US, the delicious taste of local pork would give it an advantage.
There has been public debate over the health risks of eating US pork and beef since President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) announced on Friday last week that the ban on importing US pork containing ractopamine and US beef from cattle older than 30 months would be lifted.
Asked what US pork parts could be imported, and whether ground meat containing local and US pork would be inspected under the new policy, Chen said that the government would allow all US pork parts to be imported and that mixed ground meat would need a label listing all countries of origin.
He made the remarks during a weekly news briefing at the Central Epidemic Command Center in Taipei.
Chen said he believes that the maximum allowable levels of ractopamine in pork recommended by the Codex Alimentarius Commission are science-based standards, but the Food and Drug Administration continues to collect data on local eating habits to set the best standard for the nation.
Chen said that “food safety is only one of the concerns” when asked why he said in a radio interview on Monday that most people would not experience negative health effects from eating pork containing ractopamine, even if they ate it every day for the rest of their lives, while the Council of Agriculture still insists on banning ractopamine from the local pig farming industry.
“Good taste and competitiveness are also important,” he said, adding that local pork is tasty without having to add ractopamine to the feed.
The existing methods of raising and slaughtering pigs produces safe and tasty pork — the advantage of domestic pork — so there is no need to change, he said.
Asked about a media report that cited a health practitioner as saying that the Ministry of Health and Welfare seemed to be pressuring ministry-affiliated hospitals to endorse the new import policy, Chen said that the ministry did not “pressure” them, but only asked them, as health professionals, to share health and nutrition information with the public.
The hospitals, as part of the public sector, should promote the government’s policies in their professional capacity, especially in rural areas where access to information is limited, Chen said.
Starting next week, the ministry would go to markets across the nation to demonstrate the use of the country-of-origin labels, he added.
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