Taiwan
Taiwan notified the World Trade Organization on Sept. 28 that it was invoking volume-based special safeguards on imports of pork belly, according to the latest USDA FAS GAIN report.
Based on negative publicity regarding the use of ractopamine, U.S. pork exports to Taiwan plummeted in recent years. However, due to the global pork supply dynamics, U.S. pork has rebounded to the country in 2023.
The leaders also drafted a proposed legislation earlier this month that promises treaty-like benefits for businesses seeking cross-border investment opportunities via the tax code.
With nearly 24 million people and a cultural preference for pork, Taiwan should be a better market for U.S. pork, NPPC says. Last year, Taiwan imported just $13 million of U.S. pork due to market access issues.
Taiwan’s defense ministry said China sent 71 warplanes and seven naval vessels on “strike drills” — rehearsals for conflict — into its air-defense zones.
“In the last 2,500 years, every Chinese government that has fallen, has fallen over food,” says Kuehl, Armada chief economist. “They need those import markets—be it from the U.S, Canada, Brazil or Australia.”
Taiwan’s election commission approved on Friday the holding of three referendums in late August that could affect both the island’s relations with the U.S. and its energy security if they are passed.
In August, owners of trucks transporting pigs without GPS trackers might face serious fines in Taiwan, an action the country’s Council of Agriculture has taken to prevent the spread of African swine fever (ASF).
Taiwan is a rapidly growing market for U.S. pork and beef—