Travelers reminded not to bring pork items into Taiwan from abroad

Taipei, Sept. 26 (CNA) As the Mid-Autumn Festival approaches, the Ministry of Agriculture (MOA) on Friday issued a reminder not to bring pork products into Taiwan from other countries due to the risk of African swine fever (ASF).

ASF is currently present in 82 countries, including 19 in Asia, with Taiwan and Japan the only East Asian countries still free of the disease, said Du Li-hwa (杜麗華), acting director general of the MOA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency.

Du, who is also deputy chief of the ASF Central Emergency Operation Center, urged border authorities to stay vigilant against ASF, while advising the public not to bring pork products into Taiwan or purchase meat online from abroad.

She also asked people to remind friends and relatives overseas not to send pork-filled mooncakes or other relevant gifts, to help maintain Taiwan's ASF-free status.

The warning came ahead of the Mid-Autumn Festival on Oct. 6, a time when families give mooncakes as gifts and gather to barbecue and eat meat.

According to the ASF center, the number of travelers, courier shipments and international parcels carrying banned animal products usually peaks around the Mid-Autumn Festival, with pork-filled mooncakes from abroad accounting for the majority of violations.

Taiwan began on May 20, 2022 to impose fines of NT$200,000 (US$6,559) for first-time offenders caught bringing pork products into the country and NT$1 million for repeat offenders.

From Aug. 1, 2018 to Aug. 31, 2025, a total of 9,076 pork samples seized at the border have undergone tests for ASF, with 949 testing positive, the majority of which were from China, Vietnam, Thailand and Malaysia, the center's statistics showed.

ASF does not harm humans but can be fatal to pigs and has the potential to devastate Taiwan's pork industry.