Agriculture and Food Agency Director-General Hu Jong-i (胡忠一) has held a forum in Pingtung County with orchid producers to discuss the possible impact of US tariffs on Taiwanese phalaenopsis, or moth orchids, an important export product to the US.
The government would take three approaches to boost the industry’s resilience, Hu said at the forum on Wednesday.
First, it would provide financial assistance by subsidizing interest on loans to cut costs, he said.
Photo: Wang Mei-hsiu, Taipei Times
Second, it would provide guidance in cultivation and production technology to boost competitiveness.
Third, it would encourage market expansion by increasing sales in the US and driving consumption in the domestic market, he said.
The government would also promote the use of moth orchids for religious ceremonies or in Matsu temples across Southeast Asia, Taiwan Orchid Breeders Society secretary-general Yang Yi-ping (楊怡萍) said.
Taiwan’s moth orchids are world-leading in terms of quality, variety and technical innovation, Yang said.
Ministry of Agriculture statistics showed that last year the nation’s orchid industry was worth NT$18.6 billion (US$570.4 million), of which exports accounted for NT$6.54 billion, Hu said.
Moth orchid exports totaled NT$4.94 billion, with US exports making up 40 percent at NT$1.97 billion, the ministry’s statistics showed.
Earlier this month, US President Donald Trump announced a 32 percent tariff to be levied on Taiwanese goods, although the tariff was put on hold for 90 days on Wednesday last week.
Taiwan and the US would hold additional talks on tariffs after representatives of both sides held their first meeting on April 11, the Executive Yuan’s Office of Trade Negotiations said.
The Ministry of Agriculture has also announced an NT$18 billion support package for the agricultural industry, which might be adjusted depending on the outcome of the Taiwan-US negotiations.
Taiwan would welcome the return of Honduras as a diplomatic ally if its next president decides to make such a move, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said yesterday. “Of course, we would welcome Honduras if they want to restore diplomatic ties with Taiwan after their elections,” Lin said at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, when asked to comment on statements made by two of the three Honduran presidential candidates during the presidential campaign in the Central American country. Taiwan is paying close attention to the region as a whole in the wake of a
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫), spokeswoman Yang Chih-yu (楊智伃) and Legislator Hsieh Lung-chieh (謝龍介) would be summoned by police for questioning for leading an illegal assembly on Thursday evening last week, Minister of the Interior Liu Shyh-fang (劉世芳) said today. The three KMT officials led an assembly outside the Taipei City Prosecutors’ Office, a restricted area where public assembly is not allowed, protesting the questioning of several KMT staff and searches of KMT headquarters and offices in a recall petition forgery case. Chu, Yang and Hsieh are all suspected of contravening the Assembly and Parade Act (集會遊行法) by holding
PRAISE: Japanese visitor Takashi Kubota said the Taiwanese temple architecture images showcased in the AI Art Gallery were the most impressive displays he saw Taiwan does not have an official pavilion at the World Expo in Osaka, Japan, because of its diplomatic predicament, but the government-backed Tech World pavilion is drawing interest with its unique recreations of works by Taiwanese artists. The pavilion features an artificial intelligence (AI)-based art gallery showcasing works of famous Taiwanese artists from the Japanese colonial period using innovative technologies. Among its main simulated displays are Eastern gouache paintings by Chen Chin (陳進), Lin Yu-shan (林玉山) and Kuo Hsueh-hu (郭雪湖), who were the three young Taiwanese painters selected for the East Asian Painting exhibition in 1927. Gouache is a water-based
President William Lai (賴清德) has appointed former vice president Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) to attend the late Pope Francis’ funeral at the Vatican City on Saturday on his behalf, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said today. The Holy See announced Francis’ funeral would take place on Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square. The ministry expressed condolences over Francis’ passing and said that Chen would represent Taiwan at the funeral and offer condolences in person. Taiwan and the Vatican have a long-standing and close diplomatic relationship, the ministry said. Both sides agreed to have Chen represent Taiwan at the funeral, given his Catholic identity and
RSS