Cross-strait tensions ‘a barrier to mainland entry for Taiwanese exports’
Message on substandard products not getting through, quality chief says
Cross-strait political tensions have led to breakdowns in official communications and the rejection of a large amount of Taiwanese food and cosmetics imports at mainland ports, a top quality inspection official said on Tuesday in Beijing.
The General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine, said roughly 175 batches of food and cosmetics from the island were destroyed or returned in January for failing to meet standards. The import problems ranged from packaging to insufficient documentation.
The Taiwanese products accounted for 43 per cent of all those denied entry that month.
Administration director Zhi Shuping said the authority had not imposed stricter standards, but rather political factors were to blame.
“The present Taiwan administration has not acknowledged the 1992 consensus yet,” Zhi said on the sidelines of the National People’s Congress.
The consensus is an understanding reached in 1992 that both sides acknowledge there is one China but have their own interpretation of what that means.
