[quote=“cake”]What about GM food. Is most of the produce imported from the US GM?
Are the Taiwanese farmers going the GM way?[/quote]cake -
Try doing research on “exported” GM food-stuffs and what countries allow them prior to postinf specious anti-USA clap-trap.
[quote=“TainanCowboy”][quote=“cake”]What about GM food. Is most of the produce imported from the US GM?
Are the Taiwanese farmers going the GM way?[/quote]cake -
Try doing research on “exported” GM food-stuffs and what countries allow them prior to postinf specious anti-USA clap-trap.[/quote]
Did I miss something? That looked like a couple questions to me, not specious anti-US claptrap. 
[quote=“Muzha Man”][quote=“TainanCowboy”][quote=“cake”]What about GM food. Is most of the produce imported from the US GM?
Are the Taiwanese farmers going the GM way?[/quote]cake -
Try doing research on “exported” GM food-stuffs and what countries allow them prior to postinf specious anti-USA clap-trap.[/quote]
Did I miss something? That looked like a couple questions to me, not specious anti-US claptrap. [/quote]
I missed something too. He must be eating way to much GM food…
I didn’t know asking questions about food equated to being anti-american.
Makes a change, then.
No trolling please.
You can get organic produce in Taiwan if you know where to go. If you’re really concerned about pesticides and pollution and everything that might kill you, you need to grow your own vegetables from your own tested, uncontaminated soil, and severely filter all your water. And, watch out about crossing the streets too!
NJ is probably not any better than Taiwan in terms of heavy metals pollution.
There was an article that warned pregnant women and children to stay away from certain fish because of the mercury content. Further analysis showed that the article was wrong because eating fish was overall more beneficial to your health than not eating it at all.
I think the same thought applies to vegetables. Wash them thoroughly, know the supplier, get organic vegetables if possible, and peel the vegetables if possible.
You think NJ is comparable to Taiwan in terms of heavy metals pollution? Also, washing and peeling ain’t gonna cut it (excuse the pun) if the pesticide is inside the produce. Go to cosumerreports.com- they have info from a group that tells which fruits and vegetables are more apt to have pesticides that you can’t just wash or peel away. Produce they say is lighter on the pesticides: bananas, asparagus, mangoes, kiwi fruit, papayas, pineapples, avocadoes, corn, broccoli, cauliflower, onions, and peas.
Pesticides are good for you. Who wants to be full of pests?
You’re damned if you eat the veggies, you’re damned if you don’t. Supposedly, the benefits outweigh the carcinogen-filled risks. Same thing they said about eating mercury-filled fish. The health benefits of eating fish far outweighed the risk of mercury poisoning. Eating certain quantities of food should be done in moderation. Moderation is the key. Eating too much fish is as bad as eating too much soy. Both can cause complications.
You have to consider that veggies contain phytos which are naturally cancer fighting.
The best known phytos are carotenoids, flavonoids, and isoflavones.
Phytos fight on the side of the body. Carcinogens (cancer-causing substances) can enter the body from all kinds of sources: tobacco smoke, pollution, pesticides, or just plain bad luck. Carcinogens attempt to enter cells and change how they develop. But antioxidant phytos nab the carcinogens before they have a chance to cause cancer in the cell. If the carcinogen manages to infiltrate the internal controls of the cell, other kinds of phytos help to shut down the precancerous cell so it does not multiply into a gang and overrun the neighborhood. This phyto protective mechanism explains why cultures whose diets are rich in plant foods have the lowest rates of cancer. The Mediterranean diet, for example, emphasizes garlic, tomatoes, onions, fruits, whole grains, and olive oil - all of which contain cancer-fighting phytos.
A little off topic, but- my grandfather is 90 years old and still puts in hours of hard physical labor on his farm. He was out working in the mornings/evenings during the heat wave we had this summer. It is unbelievable to me. His father died of pneumonia at 35. His mother died of diabetes at 80. He may take a blood pressure pill, but that’s it. Not like my mom who takes medicines for high blood pressure, diabetes, and cholesterol. He says worry is just a bad habit. He doesn’t eat processed food- my grandmother, who is 92 (bad osteoporosis; mind sharp), cooks almost everything from scratch. She cans their farm vegetables and puts them in the cellar to eat for the winter. They also have a huge freezer in the kitchen which she also uses for farm produce like strawberries. He has lots of $ in the bank and his land is worth gold-there are several NFL footbal players who have houses in the area- so money is no worry. His son (my dad, 70 yrs old) lives down the road and they work together everyday on the farm. His other son lives in a nearby town and takes his wife grocery shopping every week. A daughter is also just down the road. Two of his grandchildren work on the farm in the summer as I did. He lives in the same two-story brick house (circa 1927) his Italian immigrant father built by hand on the same farm they cleared trees off of. He’s not overly interested in the big problems of the day- I doubt if he bothers to vote. He still bosses around my dad and his wife (married her at 16). He eats meat, regular veggies (not organic), drinks water from his own well, and drinks wine/coffee everyday. So there you have the secrets to a long and happy life.
A lot of what you hear about food is scare tactics written by ignorant reporters who fail to take in account long term trends or lack of prior data. Seriously, do you know how cool it is in liberal circles to bash McDonald’s and Walmart?
The problem with pesticides in Taiwan as mentioned numerous times by Amcham in Topics and their White Paper is the counterfeit pesticides of dubious origin(China) and contents. These counterfeit pesticides are cheaper and often have the same markings labels as their proper trademarked and made ones.
Taiwan has an excellent Dept of Agriculture and they have been exceedingly helpful every time I have asked them for info. I would say that in regards to farmers as a group they are a smart bunch. Most of the prejudice has to do with another time when factories could only get places to build on farmland. Strawberries are bad for you everywhere, even in the US in regards to the amount of pesticides used on them. If you’re really serious about your strawberries, grow them yourself or find someone who does in a nethouse in Taiwan.
Cheers,
Okami
Good genes, eating right and sensibly, working out (working on a farm is great exercise). I’m not too sure pesticides are the greatest concern. I’d bet more diseases are caused by lack of exercise, eating processed foods, overeating, and stress. I had even heard lack of sleep is very bad. They used to say eight hours was enough. Now I hear ten hours… 
Albert Einstein would regularly get 10 hours of sleep!
yeah, even though I am concerned with chemicals and stuff, I have to look at my grandfather and wonder. Then again, farmers didn’t start piling on the chemicals in the US until the 50s, I believe, so he started with a good foundation. And my grandmother probably started looking like a young woman at 16 as opposed to 11 now.
[quote=“Okami”]A lot of what you hear about food is scare tactics written by ignorant reporters who fail to take in account long term trends or lack of prior data. Seriously, do you know how cool it is in liberal circles to bash McDonald’s and Walmart?
Cheers,
Okami[/quote]
so “Supersize me” had no impact on your view of Mcdonalds then?
ta
From the information already published, it is clear that Taiwan’s facilities for the treatment of urban sewage and municipal and industrial solid wastes are very limited. Most wastes are not treated at all, causing severe contamination of soil and water. More than 40% of the rivers in Taiwan are moderately to heavily polluted and have no beneficial use (EPA/ROC 1998).
Many agricultural fields located near industrial complexes are polluted by industrial wastewater. A notorious case was that of two chemical factories in Taoyuan county, about 50 kilometers from Taipei. The two factories had been continuously discharging untreated wastewater containing cadmium (Cd) and lead (Pb) into nearby agricultural fields for several years. As a result, about 100 ha of arable land had become unusable. A high level of cadmium had accumulated in rice grain (mean value 2.5 mg/kg), in concentrations harmful to human health (Chen 1992, Chen et al. 1994).
The discharge of untreated domestic sewage, pig manure and industrial wastewater also contaminates irrigation water in many parts of Taiwan. This indirectly causes the accumulation of nitrate salts, and heavy metals such as copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn) in agricultural soils.
[Recognizing the growing problem that everyday disposable plastic items are causing on the environment, the Taiwan government has initiated new environmental policies banning the use of disposable plastics starting with petroleum-based plastic shopping bags and disposable plastic tableware.] Source E-WIRE PRESS RELEASE.
Anyone a witness to this ‘ban’ being enforced? Yet another unregulated Taiwan law! :bravo:
What the hell IS good to eat in Taiwan?Hell,I’m content here,save for the lack of good,nutricious,reasonably priced food.What IS reasonably priced is either mediocre or unpalatable! :stinkyface:
The reasonable price depends on our own personal values. Still reasonalbe for for you might already be over the edge for someone else.
[quote=“swiftvin”][Recognizing the growing problem that everyday disposable plastic items are causing on the environment, the Taiwan government has initiated new environmental policies banning the use of disposable plastics starting with petroleum-based plastic shopping bags and disposable plastic tableware.] Source E-WIRE PRESS RELEASE.
Anyone a witness to this ‘ban’ being enforced? Yet another unregulated Taiwan law! :bravo:[/quote]
Yes. You’ll find most environmental regulations of this nature are obeyed. Look at recycling.