President Ma: The issue of US beef will never sacrifice the health of the people

As the issue of American beef continues to heat up, the Kuomintang held a Central Standing Committee meeting on the afternoon of the 14th and invited Premier Chen Chong to present a report on "Ractopamine - the government's basic principles and practices." President Ma Ying-jeou also said that whether or not to allow American beef to be allowed to be exported involves two issues: health and trade. Integrity is the most important thing in international trade. However, he also promised to give priority to people's health, ban it if there is any problem, and never sacrifice the health of the people.

Whether or not to allow American beef to be exported involves two major issues: national health and economic and trade. President Ma Ying-jeou promised to give priority to people's health.

Regarding economic and trade issues, Ma Ying-jeou explained that the Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) had been notified to the World Trade Organization (WTO) since the Chen administration, but there had been no follow-up action, causing TIFA to be suspended for five years, which severely damaged Taiwan's image of credibility in the international community.

As for whether opening up imports of American beef will cause harm to people’s health? Ma Ying-jeou said the government will take relevant steps to minimize the risks. Ma Ying-jeou has also repeatedly emphasized that the government will put people's health as the primary consideration when it comes to the issue of American beef, and will never sacrifice people's health in exchange for other interests. He also promised to immediately ban the use of American beef as soon as a problem arises.