China’s ban on Taiwan imports leaves some consumers wondering where to get their food fix

Taiwanese food like fruit and tea is prized by consumers in the mainland and Hong Kong for its ‘fragrance’, subtlety and freshness

But finding it is going to be a hard task in coming months after Beijing banned a range of food imports from the subtropical island

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Pun’s Food in Causeway Bay, Hong Kong, serves a range of imported Taiwanese foods. Photo: Xiaomei Chen

Published: 5:00am, 16 Aug 2022Updated: 9:56am, 16 Aug 2022

Guangzhou resident Su Yu used to search out Taiwanese fruit because she thinks it is healthier than produce from the mainland.

But even before Beijing banned a range of food imports from the island earlier this month, she said it was becoming hard to find.

“Fruit with Taiwanese origin labels, I have the impression that I haven’t seen any for a very long time,” said Su, a translator for a Japanese-owned company in the port city northwest of Hong Kong.

The task is only going to become more difficult in coming months. China banned Taiwanese breads, citrus fruits and packaged tea after US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi defied warnings with a whirlwind visit to Taiwan, a self-ruled island Beijing regards as a renegade province that must be reunited with the mainland.

Countries that have diplomatic ties with Beijing, including the US, acknowledge the one-China principle that holds Taiwan is part of China, but Washington opposes any attempt to take the island by force.

In dollar terms, the bans on agricultural exports amount to just 0.2 per cent of Taiwan’s total exports to mainland China, according to French investment bank Natixis. But for consumers like Su, it is likely to be a disappointment.

Diners in Hong Kong and the mainland like Taiwan’s mix of flavours, often a blend of Japanese cuisine and accents from different regions of China rather than that of a single area, such as Sichuan or Shanghai, said Jolly Chan, a Taiwanese foodie who has lived in Hong Kong for 36 years.