Experts set off to the United States to inspect the factory! Nearly 80% of it is supplied to our beef factories

In response to the discovery of the fourth case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (mad cow disease) in the United States, personnel from the Council of Agriculture, the Department of Health, and private experts, including Yang Pingzheng, director of the Taiwan Institute of Animal Science and Technology, will depart for the United States on the 5th to conduct an on-site inspection of American beef. The inspection will cover important cattle-raising states in the United States. It is reported that the inspection scope covers nearly 80% of American beef factories that supply the Chinese market, which has aroused great concern among American beef sellers in both China and the United States.

The issue of mad cow disease is a hot topic. Representatives of officials from the Council of Agriculture and the Department of Health will visit the United States today. The American beef factories that supply nearly 80% of the Taiwanese market have attracted great attention from American beef dealers in both China and the United States.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture released news on April 24, stating that during its routine monitoring, a dairy cow in California was found to be infected with mad cow disease, which attracted the attention of the Chinese people. Huang Guoqing, deputy director of the Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine of the Council of Agriculture, said that after investigation, there are currently 35 companies in the United States that meet the requirements of our country's "Quality System Assessment Program (QSA)" and have actually imported.

After consultation with the Department of Health, the Council of Agriculture decided to select eight of the top ten slaughterhouses in terms of cattle imports from January to April this year, and to add one natural beef factory, accounting for 78.01% of Taiwan's market supply. The factories are located in major cattle-raising states in the United States, including California, Nebraska, Kansas, Texas, Colorado and Utah. This itinerary was proposed by us and is still subject to negotiation and confirmation by both parties.

Huang Guoqing pointed out that the inspection list was proactively selected by us based on import volume and risk considerations, and we then asked the US to arrange the inspection itinerary based on the list we selected. The focus of this inspection will include the identification of cattle age, the refrigeration of cattle carcasses separated by age, the removal of specific risk substances, the factory's implementation of relevant U.S. health regulations and quality control programs, and the factory's implementation of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's quality system assessment program.

The visit also included visits to the U.S. Department of Agriculture headquarters and the department's National Veterinary Laboratory (NVSL) to learn about the epidemiological investigation report, diagnosis and treatment measures of the country's fourth case of mad cow disease. In addition, we will also visit feed factories and general cattle farms, and understand the management measures of hormone-free cattle farms exporting to the EU.

The Council of Agriculture emphasized that Taiwan will strictly inspect beef factories that export beef to Taiwan to ensure the safety of meat for consumers. To ensure the safety of imported meat, our country has strengthened border quarantine and quickly dispatched a large-scale inspection team to the United States to thoroughly understand the cause of the disease and the production process of our country's beef from farms to slaughterhouses to ensure consumer safety.