Taipei is undertaking a “food vendors long-term advancement project” in the hopes that more of its traditional markets would be awarded “five stars” by the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) said yesterday.
Ko made the remarks at the launch ceremony of the two-day Taipei City Traditional Market Festival at Taipei Flora Expo Park in Zhongshan District (中山), where 59 food vendors from Taipei’s traditional market offer delicacies from a variety of cuisines.
At the end of the two-day event, which is its 14th year, the Taipei Market Administration Office is to present an award to the food stall that offers the best dumpling-based dish. Nineteen dumpling vendors competed for the award.
Photo: Liu Hsin-de, Taipei Times
In the post-COVID-19 era, cooking at home will be a trend, Taipei Market Administration Office Director Chen Ting-hui (陳庭輝) said, adding that the competition focuses on dumplings because they are nutritious and convenient to prepare at home.
Ko said that if a visitor wishes to experience Taipei in just 30 minutes, they should spend the time at a traditional market, which is the epitome of the local culture and manifests Taiwan’s economic environmental and moral standards.
With that in mind, Taipei has been striving to improve its markets to become an internationally recognized civilized city, he said.
The Taipei Government has been promoting a “food vendors long-term advancement project” aimed at improving the service quality, hygiene and food safety of food stalls in the city, Ko said.
The city’s Shidong Market (士東市場), Nanmen Market (南門市場) and Ningxia Night Market (寧夏夜市) were awarded “five stars” by the ministry last year, he said, adding that hopefully other markets would also be recognized.
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