Clipping Board » Illness Enters through Mouth ─ The information that has been made public is often just the tip of the iceberg...
April 11, 2017
On March 15, "International Consumer Rights Day," the Ministry of Health and Welfare officially announced 128 "Pesticide Residue Tolerance Standards," significantly relaxing and adding pesticide residue limits for numerous agricultural products. Although ministry officials emphatically justified the move as aligning with international standards, the reality is that both the 351 items previewed on March 13 and the 128 officially announced on the 15th included up to one-third that were newly added and exceeded international standards. Why raise pesticide residue limits higher than global norms? The ministry’s explanation falls short. However, this wave of relaxations isn’t the first; it traces back to the Ma administration era, when policies were adjusted to accommodate U.S. demands.
### U.S. Submits 276-Item List; Half Relaxed Under Ma’s Term
In 2014, the U.S. government submitted a priority list of 276 items to Taiwan. According to documents from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) under the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the Ma administration began gradually relaxing pesticide residue limits for various agricultural products starting in 2011. By March 2016, 138 items had been relaxed. For the remaining 138 items on the U.S. list, the FDA rushed to preview 14 items on February 4 and April 1 last year before the Ma administration left office, officially announcing them on May 9 and July 14. Currently, 19 items are under review, while 105 have yet to receive import applications from pesticide manufacturers.
Given the Ma administration’s high level of cooperation with the U.S. request in May 2014 to relax pesticide residue limits, it’s no surprise that over half of the items were added or relaxed before its term ended last year. Consequently, the U.S. "2016 Foreign Trade Barriers Report" commended Taiwan’s compliance with American pesticide liberalization. The "2017 Foreign Trade Barriers Report" again acknowledged Taiwan’s progress in setting Maximum Residue Limits (MRLs) for pesticide chemicals.
This time, the FDA previewed 351 pesticide residue limits for 41 pesticides across agricultural products on March 13, followed by an official announcement on March 15 for 128 agricultural products involving 22 pesticides. In a March 28 response to legislator Lin Shu-fen, the FDA stated that it had adopted all recommended values from the Council of Agriculture’s Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine (BAPHIQ) for the March 13 draft revisions. For the March 15 revisions, only one pesticide—dinetofuran—was adjusted for citrus fruits to 1.0 ppm (BAPHIQ’s recommendation was 2.0 ppm), while the rest followed BAPHIQ’s suggestions.
The FDA essentially rubber-stamped all BAPHIQ’s proposals for new or relaxed pesticide residue limits. Pan Chih-kuan, head of the FDA’s Food Division, explained that relaxations are initiated by pesticide manufacturers but emphasized that the FDA ensures safety and human health before approval. Agricultural officials also admitted that companies developing new pesticides should naturally apply for approvals. Statistics show Taiwan’s main pesticide imports come from Japan, the U.S., and Germany, with a portion being domestically produced.
The Homemakers United Foundation, long concerned about pesticide regulations in domestic agriculture, not only opposes the relaxed standards but also criticizes the new government. They warn that interactions between multiple pesticides could harm health, with each additional pesticide posing unknown risks. Some residues can’t be washed off, and even tropical fruits like rambutan—not economically grown in Taiwan—were included in the new limits, raising suspicions of paving the way for future imports.The Homemakers Union expressed even greater dissatisfaction, saying, "More revisions? Over 300 items involve loosening restrictions and increasing pesticide use. Such a significant and rapid relaxation of pesticide residue tolerance standards raises doubts about the government's commitment to safeguarding public food safety. The 'Five Food Safety Reforms' are regressing instead of progressing!"
Source: http://www. upmedia. mg/ news_info. php? SerialNo=15152
US Pressure for Agricultural Market Opening Leads to Pesticide Residue Limit Relaxation under Both Blue and Green Governments
On March 15, "International Consumer Rights Day," the Ministry of Health and Welfare officially announced 128 "Pesticide Residue Tolerance Standards," significantly relaxing and adding pesticide residue limits for numerous agricultural products. Although ministry officials emphatically justified the move as aligning with international standards, the reality is that both the 351 items previewed on March 13 and the 128 officially announced on the 15th included up to one-third that were newly added and exceeded international standards. Why raise pesticide residue limits higher than global norms? The ministry’s explanation falls short. However, this wave of relaxations isn’t the first; it traces back to the Ma administration era, when policies were adjusted to accommodate U.S. demands.
### U.S. Submits 276-Item List; Half Relaxed Under Ma’s Term
In 2014, the U.S. government submitted a priority list of 276 items to Taiwan. According to documents from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) under the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the Ma administration began gradually relaxing pesticide residue limits for various agricultural products starting in 2011. By March 2016, 138 items had been relaxed. For the remaining 138 items on the U.S. list, the FDA rushed to preview 14 items on February 4 and April 1 last year before the Ma administration left office, officially announcing them on May 9 and July 14. Currently, 19 items are under review, while 105 have yet to receive import applications from pesticide manufacturers.
Given the Ma administration’s high level of cooperation with the U.S. request in May 2014 to relax pesticide residue limits, it’s no surprise that over half of the items were added or relaxed before its term ended last year. Consequently, the U.S. "2016 Foreign Trade Barriers Report" commended Taiwan’s compliance with American pesticide liberalization. The "2017 Foreign Trade Barriers Report" again acknowledged Taiwan’s progress in setting Maximum Residue Limits (MRLs) for pesticide chemicals.
This time, the FDA previewed 351 pesticide residue limits for 41 pesticides across agricultural products on March 13, followed by an official announcement on March 15 for 128 agricultural products involving 22 pesticides. In a March 28 response to legislator Lin Shu-fen, the FDA stated that it had adopted all recommended values from the Council of Agriculture’s Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine (BAPHIQ) for the March 13 draft revisions. For the March 15 revisions, only one pesticide—dinetofuran—was adjusted for citrus fruits to 1.0 ppm (BAPHIQ’s recommendation was 2.0 ppm), while the rest followed BAPHIQ’s suggestions.
The FDA essentially rubber-stamped all BAPHIQ’s proposals for new or relaxed pesticide residue limits. Pan Chih-kuan, head of the FDA’s Food Division, explained that relaxations are initiated by pesticide manufacturers but emphasized that the FDA ensures safety and human health before approval. Agricultural officials also admitted that companies developing new pesticides should naturally apply for approvals. Statistics show Taiwan’s main pesticide imports come from Japan, the U.S., and Germany, with a portion being domestically produced.
The Homemakers United Foundation, long concerned about pesticide regulations in domestic agriculture, not only opposes the relaxed standards but also criticizes the new government. They warn that interactions between multiple pesticides could harm health, with each additional pesticide posing unknown risks. Some residues can’t be washed off, and even tropical fruits like rambutan—not economically grown in Taiwan—were included in the new limits, raising suspicions of paving the way for future imports.The Homemakers Union expressed even greater dissatisfaction, saying, "More revisions? Over 300 items involve loosening restrictions and increasing pesticide use. Such a significant and rapid relaxation of pesticide residue tolerance standards raises doubts about the government's commitment to safeguarding public food safety. The 'Five Food Safety Reforms' are regressing instead of progressing!"
Source: http://www. upmedia. mg/ news_info. php? SerialNo=15152