Taiwan government to publish daily pork volume data starting January 2021

Starting from 2021, the quantity of domestic and imported pork in the Taiwan market will be posted daily on two government websites, when the importation of American pork containing ractopamine starts.

The information will be published on working days on the websites of the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Council of Agriculture.

That step is taken to ensure strict enforcement of food safety and importation regulations, amid the concerns over ractopamine. It must be noted that 90 percent of the pork consumed in Taiwan is from domestic sources, while imported pork accounts for only 10 percent of the total market.

Since President Tsai Ing-wen's announcement of the controversial wider opening of Taiwan's pork market with effect from Jan. 1, 2021, several local governments have introduced their own food safely regulations, including zero ractopamine residues in pork.

The central government has sent out official notices to the local governments, asking them to review their new regulations on ractopamine residues in pork and will try to find a solution to the conflicting rules.

The central government is planning to institute five measures to manage imports of U.S. pork containing ractopamine, including conducting inspections of such imports on a batch-by-batch basis and requiring clear labeling of pork products.

Central and local government authorities have already helped 223,000 vendors to meet the labeling requirements.