Taipei: Taiwan's six special municipalities have expressed their support for the Cabinet's proposed amendments to the Act Governing Food Safety and Sanitation. The refinements include a tiered monitoring system for food businesses based on their size and risk profile, as stated by Minister Without Portfolio Chen Shih-chung during a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday.
According to Focus Taiwan, the meeting was chaired by Chen Shih-chung and lasted for two hours, motivated by the ongoing Central Union Oil Corp. food safety scandal. Representatives from all six special municipalities, including Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an, Taichung Mayor Lu Shiow-yen, and Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chi-mai, along with deputy mayors from New Taipei, Taoyuan, and Tainan, were present.
Chen mentioned that participants agreed on the amendments' direction and discussed strengthening source management, production oversight, and digital governance. This includes establishing a shared information platform for both central and local authorities. Local officials suggested tailoring monitoring requirements to the size and nature of food businesses and incorporating risk communication, assessment, and control into a tiered system. These proposals are to be included in the draft.
Chen Chi-mai proposed classifying businesses by their potential social impact, with larger or higher-risk operators facing stricter self-management requirements. Premier Cho Jung-tai urged the Cabinet to address systemic shortcomings through swift legislative amendments to meet public expectations.
Chiang separately stated that he presented Taipei's recommendations and called for further refinement of the Cabinet's draft to streamline the legislative process. Lu appreciated the consultation with local governments but emphasized that the amendments should undergo a thorough review to ensure comprehensiveness.
According to the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the proposed amendments target 10 areas, including stricter self-inspection requirements for high-risk food businesses, in-house laboratory certification, and enhanced laboratory management and reporting rules. Other proposals include third-party sampling and notification mechanisms, risk-based local inspections, tougher penalties for delayed or false reporting, expanded traceability requirements, safeguards for fine payments, a central command mechanism for major food safety incidents, and clearer product recall and relisting rules.
The Central Union Oil contamination scandal emerged in late June 2026 following the discovery of excessive levels of benzo[a]pyrene (BaP), a dangerous Group 1 carcinogen, in batches of soybean-based cooking oil.