Chia Te Bakery, a premier producer of pineapple cakes in Taiwan, has recently made the decision not to submit supplementary information to renew its import license in China, as this would mean providing detailed recipes of its products to the China authorities.
In early 2022, China authorities requested Chia Te Bakery to provide supplementary documentation to keep its import registration active, although the expiration date of the company’s registration was not due yet. The company’s owner said that while it had been easy to apply for import approval, the authorities made providing supplementary information difficult.
Chia Te Bakery, known for its pineapple pastries, said they were required to provide details such as factory specifications, which included information like how many employees the company had in Taiwan, and the ratio of ingredients in a pineapple pastry, including the amount of sugar and cream used. The company’s owner Lin Yueh-ying said, “It feels like they don’t want to let you register… or they just want to make it more troublesome.”
Recently, Chia Te Bakery posted a social media statement which stated, “Regarding public discussions about China’s ban on Taiwanese products, Chia Te Bakery would like to clarify that the company was founded in Taiwan and have always used top-notch ingredients to ensure quality, which is why it has been trusted by domestic and foreign customers.”
Chia Te Bakery added that it had registered for import approvals overseas to help cross-border purchasing agents so that they would not need to travel to Taiwan to buy the company’s products. Nevertheless, the company emphasised that it still focuses more on the domestic Taiwan market, as such the ability to sell overseas or not will not affect the company’s future development.
