Controversy Over US Imported Potatoes; Shih Chung-liang: Scientific Sampling Used, Not Individual Inspection
Amid public concerns over new quarantine rules for US potatoes, Health Minister Shih Chung-liang clarified that food safety relies on testing solanine levels through risk-based scientific sampling, rather than inspecting every single potato for sprouts.
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- 📰 Published: April 23, 2026 at 12:46
- 🔍 Collected: April 23, 2026 at 13:01 (14 min after Published)
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: April 23, 2026 at 16:43 (3h 41m after Collected)
Central News Agency
(CNA Reporter Chen Chieh-ling, Taipei, 23rd) Quarantine regulations for imported US potatoes intended for processing have drawn public attention. Minister of Health and Welfare Shih Chung-liang stated that sprouting does not necessarily mean solanine levels exceed safety limits. Food safety standards are judged by solanine concentration. At the border, potatoes are not inspected one by one; instead, a scientific sampling method and risk stratification are applied.
Taiwan and the US established new quarantine rules for imported potatoes used in processing, sparking food safety concerns. The Executive Yuan and the Ministry of Health and Welfare have reiterated multiple times recently that toxicity inspection standards remain unchanged and will even be tightened. The government is setting quarantine conditions for processing potatoes, not allowing sprouted potatoes to be processed. Any sprouted, rotten, or toxic potatoes will absolutely not enter the market.
Shih Chung-liang attended a plenary meeting of the Social Welfare and Environmental Hygiene Committee at the Legislative Yuan this morning to give a special report and take questions on the "Review of Cross-System Collaboration and Bridging Mechanisms for the Support Services of Vulnerable Families' Children and Youth and Child Protection Case Treatments." During a media interview prior to the meeting, the quarantine rules for US potatoes remained a focal point.
Shih explained that checking imported food is divided into quarantine and inspection. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is mainly responsible for border inspections, while the Ministry of Agriculture handles quarantine, including visual checks to rule out potential pests and diseases. Taking imported processing potatoes as an example, the FDA samples 2 to 10% of each imported batch to test for pesticide residues, heavy metals, and solanine as part of their control measures.
He stated that if the test results violate regulations, the entire batch of goods will be returned or destroyed. This is the FDA's operational principle. At the border, the FDA does not inspect every single item; they conduct batch sampling based on risk levels. The sampling rate is usually 2 to 10%. If issues are found, the rate is increased to 20 to 50%, and if further problems arise, batch-by-batch inspection is implemented. This scientific sampling method has been in practice for years.
Furthermore, regarding online discussions about the safety of eating sprouted potatoes, Shih pointed out that solanine concentration is not absolutely correlated with whether a potato has sprouted. Therefore, food hygiene standards do not use sprouting to determine safety, but rather rely on the tested levels of solanine. (Editor: Chen Ching-fang)
(CNA Reporter Chen Chieh-ling, Taipei, 23rd) Quarantine regulations for imported US potatoes intended for processing have drawn public attention. Minister of Health and Welfare Shih Chung-liang stated that sprouting does not necessarily mean solanine levels exceed safety limits. Food safety standards are judged by solanine concentration. At the border, potatoes are not inspected one by one; instead, a scientific sampling method and risk stratification are applied.
Taiwan and the US established new quarantine rules for imported potatoes used in processing, sparking food safety concerns. The Executive Yuan and the Ministry of Health and Welfare have reiterated multiple times recently that toxicity inspection standards remain unchanged and will even be tightened. The government is setting quarantine conditions for processing potatoes, not allowing sprouted potatoes to be processed. Any sprouted, rotten, or toxic potatoes will absolutely not enter the market.
Shih Chung-liang attended a plenary meeting of the Social Welfare and Environmental Hygiene Committee at the Legislative Yuan this morning to give a special report and take questions on the "Review of Cross-System Collaboration and Bridging Mechanisms for the Support Services of Vulnerable Families' Children and Youth and Child Protection Case Treatments." During a media interview prior to the meeting, the quarantine rules for US potatoes remained a focal point.
Shih explained that checking imported food is divided into quarantine and inspection. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is mainly responsible for border inspections, while the Ministry of Agriculture handles quarantine, including visual checks to rule out potential pests and diseases. Taking imported processing potatoes as an example, the FDA samples 2 to 10% of each imported batch to test for pesticide residues, heavy metals, and solanine as part of their control measures.
He stated that if the test results violate regulations, the entire batch of goods will be returned or destroyed. This is the FDA's operational principle. At the border, the FDA does not inspect every single item; they conduct batch sampling based on risk levels. The sampling rate is usually 2 to 10%. If issues are found, the rate is increased to 20 to 50%, and if further problems arise, batch-by-batch inspection is implemented. This scientific sampling method has been in practice for years.
Furthermore, regarding online discussions about the safety of eating sprouted potatoes, Shih pointed out that solanine concentration is not absolutely correlated with whether a potato has sprouted. Therefore, food hygiene standards do not use sprouting to determine safety, but rather rely on the tested levels of solanine. (Editor: Chen Ching-fang)