As Taiwan enters the fourth round of tariff negotiations with the US, domestic farming groups issued a joint statement yesterday warning that importing cheap US rice under a zero-tariff arrangement would flood the market and cause irreversible harm to Taiwan’s rice industry.
The statement also called for reforms to the public grain purchasing system, advocating for a shift from a focus solely on quantity to a tiered pricing model that prioritizes quality.
Countries that have secured relatively low tariffs from the US, such as the UK, Japan, Vietnam and the Philippines, have fully opened their markets to US agricultural products.
Photo: Taipei Times
In contrast, South Korea has not agreed to import US rice and other agricultural products without restrictions, and its tariff rate is at 25 percent.
As the negotiating team, led by Vice Premier Cheng Li-chiun (鄭麗君), enters its fourth round of trade talks with Washington, President William Lai (賴清德) on Wednesday said that the aim is to protect Taiwan’s national interests, domestic industries, public health and food security.
While other countries with low tariffs have opened their markets to US agricultural products, domestic farmers’ groups expressed concern over the negative impact that would have on the local agricultural industry.
Citing Japan’s experience, where the opening of its rice market severely affected local farmers, the groups said that rice should remain a non-negotiable red line in negotiations with the US.
They said that the mass importation of cheap US rice would devastate Taiwan’s domestic rice industry, contribute to rural decline and collapse the food system, leading to an irreversible disaster.
The groups also outlined the challenges faced by the industry, saying that Taiwan is the only country globally to maintain a public rice purchasing system, where the government buys rice at a fixed price regardless of quality.
This system has reached its price ceiling and does not incentivize high-quality rice production, discouraging farmers from growing premium rice, they said.
Instead of focusing solely on quantity, the system should be reformed to reward rice quality through a tiered pricing structure, offering farmers higher returns for producing high-quality rice, they said.
This would also reduce the use of fertilizers and pesticides to better protect Taiwan’s environment, they added.
Taiwan should continue expanding its rice processing efforts, including producing rice flour to replace imported wheat flour and utilizing rice in brewing, which would increase the added value of Taiwan’s rice and open up markets, they said.
The statement called on the Democratic Progressive Party-led administration to stand firm on rice as a red line in trade talks, saying that rice is a strategic crop and not a bargaining chip.
It also urged reforms to the public rice purchasing system, advocating for the introduction of tiered pricing and quality incentives, while strengthening regional contract models to assist farmers with production, processing and marketing, thereby enhancing the resilience and value of Taiwan’s rice industry.
Farmers’ markets and groups supporting the statement include Hope Market, Water Garden Organic Farmers’ Market, East City Farmers’ Market, Tri-Small Market, the Taiwan Organic Food and Agricultural Education Association, the Taiwan Green Market Association, Wan Yao Market, Hualien Farmers’ Market, Exploring Flavors of Eastern Taiwan and the Taiwan Good Rice Circle Association.
‘NON-RED’: Taiwan and Ireland should work together to foster a values-driven, democratic economic system, leveraging their complementary industries, Lai said President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday expressed hopes for closer ties between Taiwan and Ireland, and that both countries could collaborate to create a values-driven, democracy-centered economic system. He made the remarks while meeting with an Irish cross-party parliamentary delegation visiting Taiwan. The delegation, led by John McGuinness, deputy speaker of the Irish house of representatives, known as the Dail, includes Irish lawmakers Malcolm Byrne, Barry Ward, Ken O’Flynn and Teresa Costello. McGuinness, who chairs the Ireland-Taiwan Parliamentary Friendship Association, is a friend of Taiwan, and under his leadership, the association’s influence has grown over the past few years, Lai said. Ireland is
FINAL COUNTDOWN: About 50,000 attended a pro-recall rally yesterday, while the KMT and the TPP plan to rally against the recall votes today Democracy activists, together with arts and education representatives, yesterday organized a motorcade, while thousands gathered on Ketagalan Boulevard in Taipei in the evening in support of tomorrow’s recall votes. Recall votes for 24 Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers and suspended Hsinchu City mayor Ann Kao (高虹安) are to be held tomorrow, while recall votes for seven other KMT lawmakers are scheduled for Aug. 23. The afternoon motorcade was led by the Spring Breeze Culture and Arts Foundation, the Tyzen Hsiao Foundation and the Friends of Lee Teng-hui Association, and was joined by delegates from the Taiwan Statebuilding Party and the Taiwan Solidarity
A saleswoman, surnamed Chen (陳), earlier this month was handed an 18-month prison term for embezzling more than 2,000 pairs of shoes while working at a department store in Tainan. The Tainan District Court convicted Chen of embezzlement in a ruling on July 7, sentencing her to prison for illegally profiting NT$7.32 million (US$248,929) at the expense of her employer. Chen was also given the opportunity to reach a financial settlement, but she declined. Chen was responsible for the sales counter of Nike shoes at Tainan’s Shinkong Mitsukoshi Zhongshan branch, where she had been employed since October 2019. She had previously worked
The Taipei District Court today ruled to extend the incommunicado detention of former Taipei mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) and Taipei City Councilor Angela Ying (應曉薇) for two more months as part of an ongoing corruption trial. Codefendants in the case — real-estate tycoon Sheen Ching-jing (沈慶京) and Ko's former mayoral office head Lee Wen-tsung (李文宗) — were granted bail of NT$100 million (US$3.4 million) and NT$20 million respectively. Sheen and Lee would also be barred from leaving the country for eight months and prohibited from contact with, harassing, threatening or inquiring after the case with codefendants or witnesses. The two would also be
RSS