Ministry touts 'Taiwan Peanut' label, testing to prevent fraud

Taipei, Aug. 18 (CNA) The Ministry of Agriculture (MOA) on Tuesday touted a "Taiwan Peanut" label and elemental analysis to help locally grown peanuts compete against imports.

The move comes amid concerns among local peanut farmers over the planned tariff-free import of U.S. peanuts under the Taiwan-U.S. Agreement on Reciprocal Trade (ART), although the agreement has yet to take effect.

Agriculture Minister Chen Junne-jih (陳駿季) said locally grown peanuts, which currently account for around 75 percent of Taiwan's domestic market, have a distinctive flavor, local characteristics and a relatively low carbon footprint.

"The core purpose of the Taiwan Peanut label is to create an effective distinction between domestic and imported peanuts," Chen said, adding that consumers should be able to identify 100 percent locally grown products simply by looking at their packaging.

The label will initially apply mainly to products in which the origin of the peanuts can be directly identified, such as shelled peanuts and peanut candy, he said.

More heavily processed peanut products will be considered in a second phase, Chen said, stressing that effective auditing would be essential to maintaining the credibility of the label.

The MOA said it plans to submit the necessary documents to have its peanut testing methods publicly recognized by the Taiwan Food and Drug Administration (FDA) by the end of the year.

The aim of the elemental analysis and "Taiwan Peanut" labelling is to help consumers distinguish Taiwan-grown peanuts from those imported from the United States, Brazil and Argentina, the MOA added.

The MOA said products carrying the label will be subject to regular or random inspections by the authorities. Violations such as mixing imported peanuts with domestic products, using peanuts of unknown origin, or failing to provide traceability records could result in the label being revoked.