Illegal feeding and immediate measures
At the farm in Baihe District, where 168 pigs are kept, inspectors found 10 barrels of food waste and visible waste in the troughs. All transport of pigs from the farm was immediately suspended, and the waste was sent for incineration.
The farm was fined NT$1.2 million (approximately US$38,500). The premises, vehicles, and empty barrels were disinfected. Initial laboratory results from five randomly selected pigs showed no presence of African swine fever (ASF).
Allegations of illegal activity and oversight failures
According to Tainan City Councilor Lin Yen-chu of the KMT, the farm did not have a legal operating permit. She also claimed that authorities acted only after her intervention. She stated that around 70 of the city’s 541 pig farms lack the required permits.
The Agriculture Bureau said the farm had been under enhanced supervision, but inspections on Nov. 10 and 13 revealed no violations. Only the third inspection, on Nov. 17, confirmed illegal feeding.
Food waste management crisis deepens
The case highlights a broader issue — Taiwan is struggling to process its food waste. Professor Su Jung-jeng of National Taiwan University explains that alternatives such as composting, biofuel production, or incineration cannot handle the nation’s daily waste output.
Composting requires large areas and long processing times, and demand for organic fertilizer is less than half the volume of food waste generated.
Biofuel production creates significant amounts of wastewater and sludge.
Incineration is hindered by the high moisture content of household waste, which reduces efficiency and can damage facilities.
Su noted that the use of black soldier fly larvae as waste processors is legally restricted — they may only treat vegetable-based waste. He emphasized that previous ASF outbreaks were linked to insufficient heat treatment of food waste, and that pig farms have traditionally helped reduce national food waste burdens.
Growing tensions between the government and the pig sector
Taoyuan Pig Farmers’ Association Chair Lin Cheng-te criticized the central government for increasing surveillance requirements without implementing a clear feed policy. While farmers are willing to install GPS trackers on vehicles despite not understanding the need, he said the government is slow to finalize long-awaited decisions.
He called for centralized food waste processing facilities in municipalities where food waste feed is still permitted, saying such centers would improve safety and oversight. He stressed that these centers should not handle household waste due to higher contamination risks.
Farmers also criticize the government for failing to update its food waste heat-treatment reporting system for years while demanding that farmers install surveillance systems within weeks.
Protests and ‘non-cooperation’ campaign
Pig farmers’ associations in New Taipei and Taoyuan have launched a non-cooperation campaign against the government program requiring farmers to deliver waste to incinerators themselves.
New Taipei Pig Farmers’ Association Chair Huang Ching-wen said that since subsidies ended on Nov. 6, farmers have had to cover transport costs themselves — at least NT$900 per trip. Collecting waste takes 4–5 hours, and delivery to incinerators requires an additional 4–5 hours.
Incinerators sometimes reject certain waste loads, leaving farmers with no legal way to store or dispose of the rejected waste, since they are prohibited from bringing it back to their farms.
PigUA.info based on materials from taiwannews.com.tw