Economic Integration/ Cooperation with China, though allowing a minority to get rich quick, has been detrimental to the majority of Taiwan's people, endangering them with unsafe Chinese products again and again. What will happen when one day the KMT regime insists for the sake of its one China principle no longer requiring labels that distinguish what comes from China and what comes from Taiwan?
Relying on tips to confiscate dangerous products such as that of imported bell peppers is not enough. What about all the products that came through without anyone tipping off the FDA?
"Food and Drug Administration (FDA) tests for residual pesticide on Chinese bell peppers confiscated from shipments in mid-May confirm that they did not meet Taiwanese safety standards, the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) said.
It said its harbor branch in Chiayi County’s Putai Township (布袋) received an anonymous tip alleging that six import firms were trying to exploit a window in domestic bell pepper production by importing bell peppers grown in Shandong Province, China.
The tipster said the importers knew the Chinese peppers might fail pesticide residue tests and so they would place produce more likely to pass inspection at the front of the cargo containers."
The Putai branch formed a taskforce to verify the tip, and conducted raids at the Greater Kaohsiung harbor on June 10, 12, 17 and 18, the Greater Taichung harbor on June 10 and Keelung harbor on June 18.
Eight cargo crates of bell peppers — totaling 110,000kg — were confiscated in the raids, coast guard officials said.
“FDA officials accompanying us on the raids took samples of the produce on-site and forwarded the samples to their labs for testing,” the CGA officials said.
According to the FDA, a majority of the bell peppers confiscated during the raid had excessive traces of pesticide, with Pyriproxyfen, Fipronil, alpha endosulfan, Chlorfenapyr and Burpirimate residue exceeding safety pesticide residual amount by up to 10 times.
The test also turned up traces ... As the shipment of contaminated bell peppers was confiscated before it entered customs, none of the produce entered the local distribution chain, coast guard officials said."
Read More: Taipei Times article
