In order to flex our muscle in exporting Taiwan’s agricultural products and integrate suppliers with exportation accomplishments and potentials, the Council of Agriculture has taken part in Food Taipei 2007: Taipei International Food Show, which was sponsored by Taiwan External Trade Development Council and was held from June 21 to 24 in World Trade Center Section D, in the form of Taiwan Pavilion.

COA indicates that Taiwan Pavilion comprises six sections, namely Theme Section, Crop Product Section, Fishery Product Section, Livestock Product Section, Processed Food Section and Forest Product Section, displaying Taiwan’s quality and safety agricultural products like rice, vegetables, tea, bamboo charcoal, fishery and livestock products. Furthermore, in Theme Section, COA disclosed a verifying and managerial system for agricultural products with production-marketing records, organic and quality agricultural products, thereby declaring COA’s determination to ensure the freshness, safety and high quality of Taiwan’s agricultural products and the ambition to expand aggressively their global markets.

COA notes that, in order to go in keeping with the current trend of globalization and liberalization, it has initiated and implemented the New Agriculture Movement in June, 2006, revealing the three agricultural development dimensions: innovative farming, vigorous farmers and prosperous villages. As far as the exportation of agricultural products is concerned, COA has set in motion continuously the Plan to Expand the Global Marketing of Taiwan’s Agricultural Products in order to grasp international markets by advancing holistic marketing strategy, tightening quality control, establishing a stable exportation supply system, increasing the managerial skills of exporters of Taiwan’s agricultural products and eliminating tariff and non-tariff barriers in order to enhance the competitiveness, build up a quality image and plow deeply into the global market. All these stratagems are put into practice to help the export value of Taiwan’s agricultural products increase by 20 percent in three years and make it possible for them to rise on the international market.

COA makes it clear that, in order to be in step with the increasing emphasis put by the international community on food sanitation and safety, COA has stipulated three major verifying criteria, namely, Agricultural Products with Production-Marketing Records, Organic Agricultural Products and Quality Agricultural Products through Regulations of the Production and Verification of Agricultural Products and succeeds in tightly controlling the quality and safety of agricultural products from their original places to dining tables. The Theme Section of Taiwan Pavilion publicizes the three major verifying criteria, promulgates the identifying and verifying system for agricultural products’ safety and proclaims the government’s management policy for safe quality agricultural products, so that buyers from abroad and domestic consumers may have a profound understanding of the government’s efforts in making food information public and transparent and conducing a sound management of food safety in order to reach the goal of A Quality-Guaranteed Export and A Self-Assured Domestic Consumption.

COA stresses that the pavilion comprises the other five specialty sections. The exhibition in Crop Product Section lays out items including rice, tea, vegetables, fruits and agricultural processed products, and demonstrates the export potentials of safe, quality and diversified agricultural products. In addition to launching quality bamboo charcoal foods, Forest Product Section features safe and quality management as this year’s main theme and rolls out the innovative Bamboo Perfumed Food to the public eye, thereby turning a new chapter in which forest products span into food markets. Fishery Product Section promotes various quality fishery products like Taiwan tilapia, cobia and eels. Its Image Section features safe fishery and eco-fishery as its exhibit theme and highlights the quality production image and characteristics of Taiwan’s fishery. Processed Food Section contributes to Taiwan Pavilion frozen foods, raw and fresh edible mushrooms, fishery products and preserved fruits, demonstrating the diversification and competitiveness of Taiwan’s quality agricultural products. Livestock Section displays items including Taiwan golden chicken, raw and fresh pork and its processed products, duck meat and preserved eggs, allowing buyers and visitors from home and abroad to have an immediate appreciation of the charm and palatable taste of Taiwan’s poultry and livestock products.

COA indicates that Taiwan Pavilion will provide visitors or buyers both from home and abroad with an opportunity to obtain product information and place orders, and reveal the development potentials of Taiwan’s agriculture and the quality image of agricultural products to all the participants and visitors. Not only does it serve to increase the international publicity of Taiwan’s agricultural products but also induces farmers’ management and production to go in accordance with the global market demand trends, and, at the same time, stabilizes the domestic prices. As a result , the agricultural sector can be uplifted with the aim to reaching the goal of sustainable development.