Council of Agriculture: Will implement the "cow-pig separation" policy

The Council of Agriculture, Executive Yuan, Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine pointed out on the evening of the 25th that the amendment to the Food Sanitation Management Act was passed by the Legislative Yuan in the third reading, authorizing the Department of Health to set a safe allowable amount of ractopamine based on the dietary habits of the people. The scope is limited to beef, and does not include pork and pig and cattle offal. The announcement on banned drugs for animals will also be revised to allow beta-receptors to be used as medicated feed additives for cattle, but it is still not allowed to be used in pigs and other livestock and poultry, in order to implement the Executive Yuan's "cow-pig separation" policy, fulfill its commitment to domestic pig farmers, and protect the safety of meat for the people.

The amendment to the Food Sanitation Management Act was passed by the Legislative Yuan after the third reading. In the future, both American beef and domestic beef will be regulated. (Photography by Luo Huiwen)

Huang Guoqing, deputy director of the Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine, said that after the amendment to the Food Sanitation Management Act is passed, the agency will revise the 2006 Animal Drug Prohibition Notice to read "β-agonist is a drug that is prohibited from manufacturing, mixing, importing, exporting, selling or displaying. However, it does not include medicated feed additives for cattle." This means that only ractopamine is allowed as a medicated feed additive for cattle. It is still not allowed to be used as a feed additive for pigs and other livestock and poultry. At the same time, the Department of Health has simultaneously conducted a risk assessment based on the dietary habits of the Taiwanese people and based on considerations of maintaining the health of the Taiwanese people. It has cited the latest results of the Taiwanese food intake survey and only set a safe allowable amount of ractopamine residue in beef, but not in pork. Through a double-control mechanism, the goal of "separating cattle and pigs" has been achieved.

The Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine stated that according to the Animal Drug Administration Act, animal drugs must be inspected and registered and obtain a license before they can be sold and used. Even if ractopamine is allowed for use in cattle in the future, it cannot be used in domestic cattle without obtaining an animal drug license.

The Council of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine Bureau will also strengthen the sampling of domestic livestock farms, livestock and poultry in meat markets, and feed in feed factories, and cooperate with the Department of Health's sampling results of commercially available products. Once cases of beta-receptor residues are detected, they will trace back to the source ranch, strengthen control and guidance, and impose penalties in accordance with the law to ensure the food safety of the people.