Executive Yuan Spokesperson and Minister without Portfolio Lo Ping-cheng on Saturday commented on new Chinese restrictions placed on a number of Taiwanese food exporters, as designated on China's General Administration of Customs website. Spokesperson Lo stated that Taiwan and many other countries consider Chinese registration requirements for foreign food exporters, first introduced in November 2019, to constitute an unnecessary barrier to trade. Taiwan, the U.S., the EU, Japan and other World Trade Organization members have on nine separate occasions formally raised specific trade concerns to appeal to China to suspend or postpone the implementation of its restrictive measures.
China must provide a clear explanation with specific reasons to justify why the registration process for a number of Taiwanese exporters has not been approved, and end its unfair and discriminatory treatment of Taiwan, the spokesperson said. The Executive Yuan will assist affected Taiwanese food exporters with any procedural matters, such as submitting supplementary documentation, and has tasked all related ministries and agencies to formulate plans to reduce the dependence of food exporters on specific markets, to ensure the sound development of the nation's agri-food trade sector.
To assist impacted food businesses, the Ministry of Economic Affairs is promoting the Taiwan Global Food Initiative from August to December of this year. The spokesperson said this initiative has helped Taiwanese processed food companies diversify their export sales via three key strategies of expanding domestic and foreign markets, enhancing competitiveness and providing financial support.
To safeguard fishermen's rights, the Council of Agriculture is actively helping aquatic product companies to expand their markets beyond China, bolster domestic sales, shift food processing operations outside China and strengthen cold storage and other processing capacities. The Ministry of Finance is also actively promoting a plan to develop overseas markets and strengthen domestic sales for certified vendors in the alcohol industry, by rewarding their participation in domestic and international trade shows as well as in international alcoholic beverage competitions.