Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) yesterday called on all government ministries to be on heightened alert and crack down on a recent influx of counterfeit masks, while ordering Vice Premier Shen Jong-chin (沈榮津) to set up a task force to facilitate interdepartmental communication.
Taiwan stepped up production of masks as early as March, with the government establishing a “national team” of mask manufacturers to secure supply of the vital item to contain the spread of COVID-19.
Masks manufactured by these companies carry the mark “Made in Taiwan” and form part of the nation’s mask rationing program.
Carry Hi-tech Co (加利科技), a member of the national team, was last week accused of importing masks from China and supplying them to the mask rationing program.
Another company, Haw Ping (豪品), was yesterday accused of packaging non-medical-grade masks from China as Taiwan-made medical-grade masks.
Su instructed the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA), the Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHW) and the Ministry of Justice to step up efforts to control mask production and ensure their authenticity, saying these incidents have tarnished the nation’s image and placed citizens’ health at risk.
The premier called on central and local government agencies to work together and inspect imported masks for irregularities.
All counterfeit products should be confiscated and disposed of immediately, and the importer heavily fined, he said.
The importer will also be placed on the Executive Yuan’s blacklist and will be constantly monitored, he added.
Going forward, imported masks must carry labels indicating their place of production and whether they are for medical use, Su said.
Mask machines exported from Taiwan are prohibited from including the embossing seal with the phrase “Made in Taiwan,” he said, adding that government agencies should implement the order within a week.
All requests for mask imports must include an import license so the government can keep track of them, the premier said.
Masks issued under the rationing system must carry the marks “Made in Taiwan” and “MD” (medical device), Su said.
Calling for better interdepartmental communication to prevent a recurrence of counterfeit mask incidents, Su said: “We must ensure that the public gets masks that are 100 percent made in Taiwan and have actual medical-grade functions.”
In related news, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) yesterday issued a notice stating that all locally manufactured masks must carry the marks “Made in Taiwan” and “MD” starting on Thursday next week.
Locally manufactured masks on the market without these identifying marks must be reclaimed by Dec. 17, the FDA said, adding that surplus masks must be approved by municipal or county bureaus of health before they could be sold.
The words — with a font size of at least 0.4cm — should be embossed no less than 1.5cm from the edge of the mask, the FDA said.
Manufacturers will have to absorb the cost of acquiring the embossing equipment, the FDA said, but added that Su had instructed the MOEA and the MOHW to assist members of the national team to acquire the equipment.
Additional reporting by CNA
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