Exports of pet food reach record US$17.66 million – 台北時報

The nation’s exports of pet food last year rose 44 percent from 2021 to a record 1,922 tonnes, the Council of Agriculture has said.
The value of dog and cat food exports reached US$17.66 million, compared with US$12.2 million in 2021 and increasing 377 percent from 2016.
Pet food can be categorized into daily meals and nutritional supplements, Department of Animal Industry Deputy Director Chiang Wen-chuan (江文全) said.
Photo courtesy of the New Taipei City Animal Protection and Health Inspection Office
Taiwan generally relies on imports to meet demand for dog and cat food, but the diverse supplement market is becoming a focus for domestic producers, Chiang said.
Domestic consumers prefer locally made products for functional pet foods, which contain added supplements, he said.
The segment has become local producers’ most successful export item, making significant inroads into Hong Kong, Malaysia, the Philippines, South Korea and elsewhere, he added.
Supplements include treats, dental bones and functional foods for aging pets, Chiang said.
Domestic producers make them out of animal byproducts, ensuring that nothing goes to waste, he added.
A long-time dog owner surnamed Cho (卓) said they always choose local products, as they are cheaper and of higher quality than imports.
Cho added that many of their fellow dog owners do not have children, so they have more money to spend on their pets, especially on nutritional supplements that could improve their health.
Meanwhile, a biennial council survey showed that pet ownership has declined in the past few years.
In 2021, there were 2.1 million pet dogs and cats in Taiwan, down from 2.51 million in 2017.
The overall decline was due to falling dog ownership, with the number of pet dogs falling from 1.78 million in 2017 to 1.24 million in 2021.
The number of pet cats increased over the period from 733,000 to 870,000.
The changing trend is likely due to lifestyle, as dogs require more space and attention than cats, Chiang said.
As dogs also tend to be noisier and more active, they can cause issues with neighbors or housemates living in small apartment buildings, he added.
As opposed to dog owners who typically only raise one animal, cat owners often have multiple felines, Chiang said.
Cats also do well in vertical spaces, meaning they are easier to keep in small apartments, he said.
The survey also shows a trend toward ownership of more unusual pets, such as reptiles or insects, he added.
HYGIENE: As 44% of the clusters of diarrhea cases were caused by norovirus infection, the CDC urged people to keep their hands clean and maintain food safety practices Nearly 140,000 people sought medical treatment for diarrhea last week, as 64 clusters of diarrhea cases were reported over the past four weeks, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said in a news release on Monday, advising people to maintain good hand hygiene and food safety practices during the Lunar New Year holiday. From Jan. 8 to Saturday last week, 139,728 people went to see a doctor for diarrhea — higher than the 104,114 and 116,497 cases reported in the same period last year and in 2021 respectively, the CDC’s surveillance data showed. A total of 64 clusters of diarrhea cases were
Two of the 10 most searched for cultural landmarks on Google Maps by users around the world last year were in Taiwan, surpassing some prominent landmarks in France and South Korea, Google Taiwan said on Tuesday. The Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall and Songshan Cultural and Creative Park ranked sixth and seventh on the list of Google Maps’ most searched cultural landmarks in the world last year, it said. The top five most searched cultural spots on Google Maps were the UK’s Buckingham Palace and Big Ben, the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt, Christ the Redeemer in Brazil and Belgium’s Royal
NO SUCH THING: Lecturers and public officials in China have suggested that Taiwan’s chip dominance was even more reason to invade, a former US official said Former US deputy national security adviser Matt Pottinger yesterday said Taiwan’s “silicon shield” would not deter China from invading the country. Pottinger made the remark during a teleconference in Taipei when asked about a possible timeline for Beijing to be capable of launching a full-scale invasion of Taiwan. The former White House official said that people could speculate about a timeline for a cross-strait war, but what was important for all parties involved was to take every possible step to deter that invasion “from ever taking place.” He went on to dismiss the popular notion that a “silicon shield,” meaning Taiwan’s strength in
HOLIDAY TRAVEL: Taoyuan airport is expecting nearly 1 million passengers to arrive, depart or transit through the airport from tomorrow to Jan. 30, the CAA head said The Ministry of Digital Affairs is assisting China Airlines in investigating two data breaches that exposed the private information of multiple celebrities earlier this month, Minister of Transportation and Communications Wang Kwo-tsai (王國材) said yesterday. “The airline refused to be blackmailed by hackers and reported the data breach to the police immediately,” Wang told a news conference. “The Ministry of Digital Affairs is using its expertise in cybersecurity to help the airline investigate the incidents.” Two possible reasons for the breach have been identified: Either the airline’s database was hacked, or the information was deliberately leaked to the public by insiders,

source