African Swine Flu

The war on viruses: What’s that got to do with the price of eggs?

composite image showing laying hens and people queuing for eggs
Business and Economy 
Phillip Charlier 1 Comment , , ,

As Taiwan goes into the Lunar New Year holidays, people are facing empty egg shelves in some supermarkets, long queues at stores with supplies, and rising prices that have been capped as an emergency measure by the Council of Agriculture. Just as egg prices rise while supply falls, hundreds of thousands of chickens are being culled due to “bird flu.” But this seems to be the elephant in the room. Taiwan’s peak government agricultural authority, the Council of Agriculture, doesn’t

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Premier holds Winnie the Pooh as he urges Chinese government to come clean on swine flu

Taiwan Premier Su Tseng-chang and Winnie the Pooh
Politics 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment , , , ,

In a move seen by some as mocking PRC President Xi Jinping, Premier Su Tseng-chang released a video in which he held a Winnie the Pooh doll up as he exhorted the government of China to strengthen epidemic prevention, and share information with its neighbors. The video, posted to Premier Su’s Facebook page yesterday, came in the form of a faux cooking show, in which Su and his assistant demonstrated the importance of cooking pork thoroughly to prevent the spread

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Hog carcass found on Kinmen beach infected with African Swine Fever, came from China

pig carcass found on Kinmen infected with ASF
Business and Economy 
Phillip Charlier 0 Comment , ,

Taiwan’s Council of Agriculture (COA) told reporters today that a dead pig found washed up on Jinsha Beach in Kinmen County, December 31, has been confirmed to be infected with the African Swine Fever virus, and originated in China. As a result of the finding, all pork meat, and pork-related products originating on the islands of Kinmen will be banned from entering Taiwan for a period of two weeks, as pigs on the 68 hog farms in Kinmen are tested

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