Forged GAP (Good Agricultural Practice) labels under thorough investigation; the Agriculture and Food Agency found two cases on the first day

Text/Agriculture and Food Agency, Council of Agriculture

In response to the discovery yesterday (the 8th) of counterfeit GAP (Good Agricultural Practice) certification marks, the Agriculture and Food Agency of the Council of Agriculture, Executive Yuan, launched an expanded inspection this (9th) day, visiting various sales outlets to inspect 176 GAP products, and found 2 non-compliant items at the Sanchong Market, one of which was a counterfeit mark and will be referred for investigation and handling in accordance with the law. The other was a mark whose lower edge had 9 identification codes misprinted as 10 codes; an immediate removal from shelves and recall has been required, along with a deadline for improvement. To safeguard the credibility of the GAP mark, the Agency will publish a whistleblower hotline and will further strengthen inspections targeting traditional markets and wholesale markets.

Sampling and Testing of GAP Fruits and Vegetables on the Market

The Agriculture and Food Agency explained that, in order to confirm that farmers and all distribution channels use the GAP mark in accordance with regulations, the Agency this (9th) day mobilized its regional branches to inspect GAP mark products at sales outlets in 18 special municipalities (counties), deploying 46 people to 67 sales outlets (including 34 supermarkets, 5 hypermarkets, 24 traditional markets, 3 fruit and vegetable markets, and 1 fruit specialty store) to inspect 176 GAP products. The inspection results found 2 non-compliant items at the Sanchong Market, while the remaining 174 items all complied.

Of the 2 non-compliant cases, 1 involved a counterfeit mark and will be followed up with investigation and handling under Article 96 of the Trademark Act. The other involved a GAP mark whose identification code should have been 9 codes but was misprinted as 10 codes; the farmer's right to use the mark has been suspended in accordance with regulations, the product has been immediately removed from shelves and recalled, and improvement is required within 1 month, after which it must be reported to the Agriculture and Food Agency for review and may only be used after approval.