Ma urges new COA chief on US beef issue

Ma had expressed gratitude toward the departing Cabinet members, including current COA Minister Chen Wu-hsiung (陳武雄). Although Chen Bao-ji (陳保基), the new agriculture minister-designate, said he must remain silent about whether the government would agree to importing rectopamine-added U.S. beef, Ma had already conversed with him on the issue, the United Evening News pointed out.

'Japan could, why not Taiwan?'

Chen did comment on Japan's “double standards” on importing U.S. beef, however, in Japan it is legal if a certain level of rectopamine residue were detected in imported beef, though domestic beef must be completely free of feed additives.

The government takes all sorts of international policies on the subject as references, he remarked, emphasizing that the COA would of course put the Taiwanese people's health and industrial development in first priority.

It is obvious that of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) Chairman Raymond Burghardt had linked the beef importation with politics, which complicated the issue, Chen had said.

“If the use of feed additive remains banned, then there will be no 'appeasing the local livestock industry' talk necessary,” Chen said, refusing to further comment on the topic.

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