《TAIPEI TIMES》 Prices of bananas, pineapples have stabilized: council

FAKE NEWS: False and misleading reports that the government was powerless to stop prices from plunging only harm farmers, an official said

By Lin Chia-nan / Staff reporter

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The prices of bananas and pineapples have stabilized, the Council of Agriculture （COA） said yesterday, urging local media to stop running false or misleading reports that affect farmers’ livelihoods.

Warmer weather and less rainfall this year led to an overproduction of many crops, especially tropical fruits such as bananas, pineapples and mangoes, the council said.

As prices plunged, the council found itself under fire over the past few months.

The average price of bananas at Taipei’s wholesale markets was NT$18.4 per kilogram as of yesterday, council Deputy Minister Chen Chi-chung （陳吉仲） said, adding that the agency last week achieved its goal of raising the price to NT$15 per kilogram.

Some media reports saying banana and pineapple prices have plunged to a state out of the council’s control are incorrect, Chen said.

Referring to several reports by the Chinese-language China Times on Monday, Chen said its claim that the government’s cross-strait policy is to blame for the nation’s diminished crop exports is misleading.

Such reports have affected local farmers and might be used by retailers to demand lower prices, he said, calling on the paper to issue corrections.

Total fruit exports in the first five months of the year reached a 10-year high of 43,570 tonnes, or US$79 million in terms of value, the council said.

Pineapple exports, in particular, totaled 31,947 tonnes from the beginning of the year to Sunday, the highest since 2012, council data showed.

The council is continuing its efforts to reform the system to meet supply and demand, Chen said.

To extend the shelf life of crops, it has budgeted NT$1 billion （US$33.13 million） to construct three cooling technology centers in Taoyuan as well as Changhua and Pingtung counties, which are expected to be finished in three to five years, he said.

The council is also working on increasing the ratio of processed agricultural products, he said, adding that only 5 percent of bananas are made into food products.

Other long-term plans include adjusting the nation’s tariffs on “sensitive items,” such as garlic and onion, Chen added.

新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES