Hoping to save its bid to hold a national referendum on the import of US beef products, the Consumers’ Foundation yesterday urged Taiwanese to exercise their right to make their own decision and back the initiative.
The foundation appealed to consumers to endorse the referendum on reopening beef talks with the US, arguing that the public should not be complacent despite legislation passed in February that bars US ground beef, offal and other “risky” beef parts from entering Taiwan.
“Beef eaters are not completely safe from the threat of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) contamination simply because they will not be exposed to high-risk US ground beef or beef offal,” the foundation said.
The group cited results of tests from the US, Italy and France that indicate high-risk prion proteins, the source of BSE, were also found in bone-in beef, including bones with meat, skirts (diaphragms) and tongues, blood tubes, tonsils and other internal parts.
The Consumers’ Foundation-led initiative met the initial requirement for consideration in February when it collected 129,000 signatures, far surpassing the required 86,000 signatures.
That permitted the drive to move to the second stage, which requires the initiators to obtain the endorsement of at least 5 percent, or roughly 860,000, of eligible voters in Taiwan, within six months.
As of this week, only 100,000 signatures had been collected, and the referendum campaign will be voided if another 760,000 signatures cannot be obtained by Aug. 10.
The proposed referendum will ask voters to veto the government’s decision to open Taiwan’s market to US bone-in beef, ground beef and bovine offal and spines and demand that the government renegotiate a beef trade protocol with the US.
Taiwan and the US signed the protocol in October last year to allow bone-in beef and other beef products to enter, including ground beef and offal, that had previously been banned on concerns over BSE.
The protocol triggered a public outcry, prompting the February legislation. However, the US Department of Agriculture announced in mid-April that exports of beef products to Taiwan would include hanging tenders, tongues, penises, testicles, tails and diaphragms derived from cattle less than 30 months of age slaughtered on or after April 1.