About a dozen demonstrators protested against US pork Wednesday. The protest took place in front of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT), the de facto US embassy in Taiwan.
US pork and beef generally contain leanness-enhancing drug ractopamine, which is tightly regulated in Taiwan. Chairperson of the ROC Swine Association Pan Chang-cheng said that if President-elect Tsai Ing-wen allows US pork containing the drug into Taiwan, the public will believe she swindled their votes. Pan said that if that happens, he will organize a large-scale protest in Taipei.
Pan said imports will have a big impact on pork prices. "If there are imports of US pork containing ractopamine, it will affect people’s health and affect the rights of pig farmers in Taiwan. Currently, the auction price for pigs is NT$67-68 NT dollars. If pork with ractopamine is imported, prices may go down by a half," Pan said.
Pan said that imports of US pork could seriously harm pig farmers in the southern county of Pingtung, as most of them take out loans to raise pigs. A quarter of the pork in Taiwan comes from Pingtung.
Legislator Chou Ni-An was also at the protest. Chou said Taiwan and the US should work towards food safety and not allow the import of toxic pork to Taiwan.