Consumer Foundation: There are still deficiencies in labeling the origin of American beef with ractopamine

After more than half a year of public opinion and debate, the case of American beef with ractopamine was finally decided at the Legislative Yuan's extraordinary session today, the 25th. In the future, beef imports that meet safety standards will be allowed. In this regard, consumer protection groups believe that the government should first require meat products to have detailed labels such as origin and pasture for public reference, and that a "Consumer Protection Fund" should be established as soon as possible to provide care for victims of poisoning caused by eating meat products containing clenbuterol.

The import of American beef with ractopamine has been confirmed. The Consumer Foundation believes that the government should further refine the regulations on meat labeling, not only indicating the country of manufacture but also the ranches where the cattle were raised.

Su Jinxia, ​​chairman of the Consumers' Education Foundation, said that although American beef with ractopamine has been allowed to be imported, the government should still take responsibility for the quality control. Although the Executive Yuan has announced that it will require businesses to clearly indicate the country where the meat was manufactured in the future, such labeling is still insufficient and needs to be more detailed, including the origin and ranch of the meat, to provide the public with sufficient information as a reference for dietary considerations.

For businesses that import meat that does not contain any ractopamine, a self-clearance channel can be provided, such as approval to use a "clenbuterol-free" label or logo.

According to the revised provisions of the Food Sanitation Management Act passed in the third reading, the safe allowable residue level of clenbuterol will be opened in the future. However, if cases of poisoning occur at home or abroad due to eating meat with safe allowable amounts, the government should immediately stop imports and assume responsibility for care.

In this regard, Su Jinxia pointed out that the burden of proof should be borne by the industry operators. At the same time, in order to ensure consumers' rights to seek compensation, we call on the government to review and approve the "Consumer Protection Fund Draft" as soon as possible, and incorporate it into the current "Consumer Protection Law". The industry will set aside fixed funds to establish a "Consumer Protection Fund" and formulate claims standards and mechanisms to provide additional protection for consumers who are unfortunately harmed.