Taiwan’s “Freedom Pineapples” Campaign Launches After Chinese Ban

Pineapples are a large share of Taiwan’s fruit industry and are one of the nation’s most important exports (Wikimedia Commons).

China announced a ban on pineapples imported from Taiwan on February 26. Beijing invoked the embargo, which went into effect on Monday, based on concerns that the fruit could carry harmful organisms. 

Taiwan’s Council of Agriculture lambasted the move as “unacceptable,” and it was joined by other Taiwanese politicians who accused China of operating with a political motive. 

For decades, China has considered Taiwan to be one of its territories, despite the island’s independent administration from the mainland country since 1949. Critics view China’s import ban as an attempt to force Taiwan to fold to its economic power. Along with the tourism sector, fruit is one of the most important industries in the Taiwanese economy. 40 percent of Taiwan’s fruit exports are pineapples, and Taiwan exports 90 percent of those pineapples to China.

As the ban took effect, federal and local government officials began urging Taiwanese consumers to purchase pineapples in order to make up for a potential shortfall. The ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) created a group to promote domestic consumption.

“Taiwan will stand together in unity, as people face unreasonable actions in international trade,” said Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-Wen.

Taiwan’s Foreign Minister, Joseph Wu, called on foreign and domestic consumers to offset the Chinese ban in a Tweet which used #FreedomPineapple. Taiwan’s consumers responded to the campaign by buying a year’s supply of pineapples in four days, neutralizing the effects of the ban.

“A crisis also creates new opportunities. When facing challenges, Taiwan never gets knocked down. We take them on and grow stronger,” said Tsai. “Taiwanese came together to support hardworking farmers and their high-quality products. The international community will also stand with Taiwan.”

Officials of both Canada and the United States have expressed their support for the “Freedom Pineapple” movement. Referencing Wu’s hashtag in a tweet, the Canadian Trade Office mentioned that a Canadian invented pineapple pizza in 1962. The American Institute in Taiwan also tweeted in solidarity, encouraging the consumption of pineapples.

Although the United States and Canada, like most countries, do not officially recognize Taiwan as a state, they are willing to support the island in order to demonstrate against China’s policies on trade and human rights.

This week, Taiwan entered an export agreement with Australia to mitigate the effects of China’s ban. Although the pineapple purchases this week have offset short-term economic impacts, it is likely Taiwan will continue to seek new trade agreements to maintain its fruit industry.