June 9, 2020

Taiwan's fresh pork exports to restart if FMD-free classification gets through 

A foot-and-mouth disease-free classification will pave the way for Taiwan to restart its fresh pork exports in the second half of this year, according to the Council of Agriculture (COA).

The country is expected to receive the notification in mid-June from the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) due to its success in containing FMD without vaccination. The classification would also make Taiwan the only Asian country other than Japan to achieve the status.

Singapore would be the first market to receive fresh pork from Taiwan once exports of the meat is green-lighted, COA chief Chen Chi-chung said.

Taiwan currently exports only certain processed pork products to a handful of countries. In response to FMD, the country embarked on a programme to terminate FMD inoculation on July 1, 2018, and after a full year of no reported infections, it applied in July last year to the OIE for a FMD-free status.

COA data revealed that Taiwan raises 5.51 million swine, with the output value of pig farming at NT$70.9 billion (US$2.4 billion) in 2019.

- Focus Taiwan