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Taipei, Jan. 12 (CNA) The Council of Agriculture (COA) vowed Wednesday to crack down on the practice of mixing poor-quality broken rice with quality Taiwanese rice on the local market after a lawmaker expressed concern over the issue. Opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Tsai Huang-liang said at a press conference that it is difficult to see with the naked eye if the rice in a package is mixed. He also said the broken rice, imported from overseas, is only animal feed grade. Some importers mix rice to lower their costs, he said, as the average price of imported broken rice is NT$20 per kilogram compared with the cost per kilo of between NT$30 and NT$100 (US$3.43) for Taiwanese rice. Taiwan imports 140,000 metric tons of rice every year, 65 percent of which goes to government agencies, while the remaining 35 percent, or more than 50,000 metric tons, goes to the private sector. In terms of broken rice alone, which is mainly used in food processing or liquor-making, Taiwan imported more than 2,000 metric tons last year. At the press conference, You Sheng-feng, deputy director-general of the Agriculture and Food Agency under the COA, said the government will strengthen rice inspection. The government will also instruct rice importers to clearly indicate the percentage of broken rice and its origins on their packaging labels. |
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