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進入《TAIPEI TIMES》 MOA touts ‘Taiwan Peanut’ label
Minister of Agriculture Chen Junne-jih, center, holds a placard bearing the “Taiwan Peanut” label as he poses for a photograph at a news conference in Taipei yesterday. Photo: Screen grab from the Ministry of Agricultures’ Web site
/ Staff writer, with CNA
The Ministry of Agriculture （MOA） yesterday promoted a “Taiwan Peanut” label and elemental analysis to help locally grown peanuts compete against imports.
The move comes amid concerns among local peanut farmers over the planned tariff-free importation of US peanuts under the Taiwan-US Agreement on Reciprocal Trade （ART）, although the agreement has yet to take effect.
Minister of Agriculture Chen Junne-jih （陳駿季） said locally grown peanuts, which account for about 75 percent of Taiwan’s domestic market, have a distinctive flavor, local characteristics and a low carbon footprint.
“The core purpose of the Taiwan Peanut label is to create an effective distinction between domestic and imported peanuts,” he said, adding that consumers should be able to identify 100 percent locally grown products simply by looking at their packaging.
The label would initially apply mainly to products in which the origin of the peanuts can be directly identified, such as shelled peanuts and peanut candy, he said.
More heavily processed peanut products would be considered in a second phase, Chen said, adding that effective auditing would be essential to maintaining the credibility of the label.
The MOA said it plans to submit the necessary documents to have its peanut testing methods publicly recognized by the Food and Drug Administration by the end of this year.
The aim of the elemental analysis and “Taiwan Peanut” labeling is to help consumers distinguish Taiwan-grown peanuts from those imported from the US, Brazil and Argentina, the ministry said.
Products carrying the label would be subject to regular or random inspections, it said, adding that violations such as mixing imported peanuts with domestic products, using peanuts of unknown origin or failing to provide traceability records could result in the label being revoked.
新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES
