Members of several non-government organizations and political parties hold a protest in Taipei yesterday against the recently-signed agreement between Taiwan and US trade offices on imports of US beef products, with two people dressed as 'demon oxen' (center front and behind), representing US imports, and two others draped in flags of the ruling Kuomintang and largest opposition party, the Democratic Progressive Party, both of which have allegedly claimed that US beef is safe. CNA

TAIPEI: Over 200 stores and restaurants in Taipei City have signed up for an alliance to reject sales of US beef offal, ground beef and spinal cords or their use as ingredients, over health concerns, a city government official said yesterday.

Just a day after the Taipei City Office of Commerce initiated a plan to encourage the city's 15,000 restaurants, supermarket chains, hotels and department stores to form an alliance whose members will boycott the sale or use of US beef offal, ground beef and spinal cords, more than 200 stores had already signed up, said Liu Chia-chun, director of the office.

Liu said his office will accept applications between November 11 and December 31 by these stores for an alliance badge they can display in their stores to indicate that they do not supply or use US beef offal, ground beef or spinal cords.

If stores carrying the alliance badge are found to be selling or using these products, they will be stripped of their certificates and fined in accordance with the Consumers Protection Law, he said.

Stores and restaurants that do not join the alliance will be checked randomly and required to indicate on their packaging or menus the country of origin of their beef, he continued.

In related news, Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-pin, who in a rare rebuke of the "central government" the day before in which he voiced outright opposition to it's decision to allow imports of US beef offal and ground beef, said yesterday that his opposition was not politically motivated.

Hau said the city government's decision to boycott the protocol inked recently by the Department of Health (DOH) with the US on opening Taiwan's doors wider to US beef imports was made purely over health concerns.

The mayor said he fully understands the dilemma that the government was facing when it signed the protocol, but he agreed with a senior government official who said recently that "opening the market does not mean that the government will push sales."

Hau said he supports the boycott drive simply because he is the mayor of Taipei and responsible for overseeing the health of city residents, based on professional knowledge that he learned as a student and professor of food science and nutrition.

The DOH announced October 23 that Taiwan would expand market access to US beef after officials clinched an accord the previous day in Washington, DC, to lift a partial ban on US beef imports imposed after cases of bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or mad cow disease, were recorded there.

Under the terms of the new accord, US bone-in beef, ground beef, intestines, brains, spinal cords and processed beef from cattle younger than 30 months that have not been contaminated with "specific risk materials" will be allowed to enter Taiwan starting November 10. At present, Taiwan allows imports of US boneless beef only from cattle younger than 30 months that contain no such risky materials.

Meanwhile, Yang Chiu-hsing, magistrate of the southern county of Kaohsiung, issued a directive yesterday for the exclusion of US ground beef and offal from meals at the county's schools. The order came on the heels of a recent decision by the "central government" to allow the importation of US bone-in beef, offal, ground beef and spinal cords, effective from next month.

Yang also instructed Kaohsiung county government officials to make sure that beef and beef products in restaurants and supermarket chain stores in Kaohsiung County are properly labeled to show the country of origin.

Yang dissuaded Kaohsiung residents from consuming US bone-in beef, ground beef and offal, saying this is a health precaution.

In another development, US beef and beef products are not expected to appear on tables at military bases, at least not before the end of 2010, the defense authorities said yesterday.

The defense department recently signed contracts with suppliers of frozen beef from Australia and New Zealand and those contracts will not expire until the end of 2010, said spokesman Yu Sy-tue.

The military will continue to pay attention to the origin of meat products that are served at military bases, which have a combined population of over 200,000 people, and will also carry out random inspection of meat products in cooperation with the economic affairs authorities and other relevant government agencies, he added.

China Daily/CNA

(HK Edition 10/28/2009 page2)