KUALA LUMPUR: Taiwan’s Taichung City Government has introduced a “Taichung Premium Agricultural Products” anti-counterfeit label to help consumers identify authentic Taichung ponkan (mandarin orange) in the Malaysian market.
The Taichung City Government said there had been many cases of counterfeit Taichung ponkan gift boxes in the Malaysian market in the past Lunar New Year seasons which led to losses for both the consumers and the farmers.
To ensure consumers are buying authentic agricultural produce from Taichung, the Taiwan Shihkang District Farmers’ Association and the Dongshih District Farmers’ Association from Taichung City launched the label initiative at a press conference held in Ibis Hotel Kuala Lumpur City Centre today.
The mandarin orange brand will also be registered in Malaysia and Singapore in the near future to further protect the brand in these markets.
Shihkang District Farmers’ Association of Taichung City marketing department director Fu Yu Chin said Taichung is exporting a total of 650 metric tonnes of ponkan to Malaysia, Singapore, Japan, Brunei and Canada, with Malaysia and Singapore accounting for a significant proportion of the sale.
“The moderate weather in Taiwan this year and the lower rainfall towards the end of the growing season have resulted in outstanding quality ponkan,” said Fu.
Fu added Shihkang District Farmers’ Association and Dongshih District Farmers’ Association have obtained the Global Good Agricultural Practices and ISO 22000 certifications.
“These certificates show that Taichung farms have achieved high standards across all aspects of farming including farm management, food safety training, personnel management, workplace standards, employee welfare, environmental protection, food-safe packaging, high-quality grading, and sorting.
“With these certificates, consumers can be rest assured that they are buying the best quality and safest ponkan in the market,” added Fu.
Taiwan golden ponkan is the best seasonal gift this Lunar New Year. Have you always wanted to try the high-quality and juicy mandarin oranges from Taichung City? Now is your chance.
It is sold across Malaysia by retailers including Harvest Impact, Aeon CO (M) Sdn Bhd, Cold Storage, Whole Food Express, and Star Grocer.
