February 11, 2011

Taiwan's agricultural sector hit hard by cold fronts

Taiwan's agricultural sector has suffered losses of TWD84.46 million (US$2.93 million) over the last month, as low temperatures brought by cold fronts damaged crops and fish farms in some areas, Taiwan's Council of Agriculture said Tuesday (Feb 8).

As of February 8, the financial losses from crop damage had reached TWD21.58 million (US$0.74 million), with a total of 455 hectares of agricultural land affected, the council said.

In the fishery industry, total losses of TWD62.88 million (US$2.16 million) were reported. Penghu County, the worst-hit area in the sector, suffered losses of TWD24.86 million (US$0.85 million), followed by Kaohsiung City with TWD16.43 million (US$0.56 million) and Tainan City with TWD16.10 million (US$0.55 million), according to the council.

The council said it has approved plans to compensate tangor farmers for their losses, and will decide on subsidies for the Penghu County fishery industry after the affected areas have been inspected.