A duck farmer in Yunlin County surnamed Liu (劉) was yesterday indicted for illegally importing bird flu vaccines from China, in a case that authorities said underscores Taiwan’s blanket ban on such products.
Taiwan has not approved any bird flu vaccines, and the manufacture, importation, sale or use of such products is illegal under the Veterinary Drugs Control Act (動物用藥品管理法), the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency said.
Contraventions are punishable by prison sentences of up to seven years and fines of up to NT$4.5 million (US$142,365), the agency said.
Photo courtesy of the Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine
Prosecutors allege Liu, 42, imported 1,886 bottles of unapproved bird flu vaccine in February and July last year and attempted to evade customs inspections by falsely declaring the shipment as floor cleaner.
Each bottle could be used to vaccinate about 500 birds, meaning the seized vaccines could have been administered to more than 940,000 fowl, prosecutors said.
The investigation involved the Coast Guard Administration and the Ministry of Agriculture, prosecutors said.
Searches were last year carried out at customs offices and the suspect’s residence, resulting in the seizure of the 1,886 bottles of illegal animal vaccine, prosecutors said.
Liu was released on bail of NT$50,000 before prosecutors concluded their investigation and formally indicted him, they said.
Although Liu said the vaccines were for personal use and not sold to others, the quantity imported far exceeded his farming needs, prosecutors said.
Considering that most countries issue more than five denominations of banknotes, the central bank has decided to redesign all five denominations, the bank said as it prepares for the first major overhaul of the banknotes in more than 24 years. Central bank Governor Yang Chin-lung (楊金龍) is expected to report to the Legislative Yuan today on the bank’s operations and the redesign’s progress. The bank in a report sent to the legislature ahead of today’s meeting said it had commissioned a survey on the public’s preferences. Survey results showed that NT$100 and NT$1,000 banknotes are the most commonly used, while NT$200 and NT$2,000
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) yesterday reported the first case of a new COVID-19 subvariant — BA.3.2 — in a 10-year-old Singaporean girl who had a fever upon arrival in Taiwan and tested positive for the disease. The girl left Taiwan on March 20 and the case did not have a direct impact on the local community, it said. The WHO added the BA.3.2 strain to its list of Variants Under Monitoring in December last year, but this was the first imported case of the COVID-19 variant in Taiwan, CDC Deputy Director-General Lin Ming-cheng (林明誠) said. The girl arrived in Taiwan on
ANNUAL EVENT: Two massive Pokemon balloons are to be set up in Daan Park, with an event zone operating from 10am to 6pm This year’s Taipei Floral Picnic is to be held at Daan Park today and tomorrow, featuring an exclusive Pokemon Go event, a themed food market, a coffee rave picnic area and stage performances, the Taipei Department of Information and Tourism said yesterday. Two massive Pokemon balloons are to be set up in the park as attractions, with an exclusive event zone operating from 10am to 6pm, it said. Participants who complete designated tasks on-site would have a chance to receive limited-edition souvenirs, it added. People could also try the newly launched game Pokemon Pokopia in the trial area, the department said. Three PokeStops are
South Korea is planning to revise its controversial electronic arrival card, a step Taiwanese officials said prompted them to hold off on planned retaliatory measures, a South Korean media report said yesterday. A Yonhap News Agency report said that the South Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs is planning to remove the “previous departure place” and “next destination” fields from its e-arrival card system. The plan, reached after interagency consultations, is under review and aims to simplify entry procedures and align the electronic form with the paper version, a South Korean ministry official said. The fields — which appeared only on the electronic form
RSS