Liquid Egg Product Management: The Agricultural Production and Certification Management Act and the Animal Industry Act Should Be Amended Promptly

Council of Agriculture Minister Chen Chi-chung presented a report titled "Eggs Have Their 'Rules'" at the Executive Yuan Food Safety Meeting on the 3rd, stressing that cracked eggs must absolutely not be given to consumers to eat, nor may they be used as liquid eggs. The "Agricultural Production and Certification Management Act," which has already passed its first reading in the Legislative Yuan, can require that liquid egg production must comply with good manufacturing practices and be traceable. Once the bill is passed and takes effect, it will prevent operators from using cracked eggs as a source for liquid eggs.

In his report, Chen Chi-chung pointed out that egg and liquid egg problems may arise at livestock farms, washing and grading stations, and liquid egg operators. For example, livestock farms have an average of 1% cracked eggs, but cracked eggs cannot be given to consumers to eat, nor can they be used for liquid eggs. By requiring livestock farms to comply with good manufacturing practices and traceability requirements, this can be avoided. The legal basis for agricultural product traceability lies in the "Agricultural Production and Certification Management Act," which Chen Chi-chung said is expected to pass in the Legislative Yuan's next session. Premier Su Tseng-chang, who chaired the food safety meeting, instructed Chen Chi-chung that the Council of Agriculture should actively seek support to complete the legislative amendment as soon as possible, and also required the Council of Agriculture to submit the draft amendment to the Animal Industry Act to the Executive Yuan as soon as possible.

Regarding liquid egg management, the Food and Drug Administration has actually already begun work. At the end of May, it pre-announced the "Draft Sanitation Standards for Liquid Eggs" and the "Draft Regulations Governing Labeling of Liquid Egg Products," explicitly stipulating that cracked eggs cannot be used as raw material for liquid eggs, with implementation expected on New Year's Day 2020 (Minguo 109). Violators face fines of up to NT$3 million. As unscrupulous liquid egg incidents keep emerging, the FDA convened discussions among industry, government, and academia and decided to regulate the form of raw eggs. In addition to eggs with intact shells and no cracks being usable for liquid eggs, cracked-shell eggs with cracked shells but intact shell membranes, no leakage of egg liquid, and no dirt on the shells can also be used for liquid eggs.

In addition, at the food safety meeting, Su Tseng-chang also heard a report on "Strengthening Inspection under the Five Links of Food Safety - Overall Review and Improvement Measures for Cross-Ministerial Inspection and Monitoring Results in 2018 (Minguo 107) and the First Quarter of 2019 (Minguo 108)." From 2018 (Minguo 107) to the first quarter of 2019 (Minguo 108), the number of tests for drug safety monitoring of agricultural, fishery, and livestock products increased to 104,000, with a pass rate of over 96%. Su Tseng-chang required relevant ministries to review and revise regulations, integrate agricultural product standards, and provide standards that consumers can trust, so as to implement food safety.