TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Ministry of Environment plans to install temperature sensors and surveillance cameras at all pig farms that use food waste for feed across Taiwan to ensure proper waste processing.

Local farms that use food waste for feed are required to upload video footage of their management to the ministry’s system, including the collection process and cooking steps. The initiative is expected to replace the current image-upload method, per CNA.

Earlier this month, a Taichung farm reported more than 117 pig deaths from African swine fever that were linked to food waste. In response, the ministry and the city government culled the 195 remaining pigs at the farm, buried the bodies, and disinfected the facility.

The ministry also issued a nationwide suspension on the transport and slaughter of pigs until Nov. 6. Domestic slaughterhouses and meat markets have been instructed to strengthen disinfection measures, while pig farms are temporarily prohibited from feeding pigs with food waste.

The infection also raised public concern about the management of food waste. Although the ministry requires all 435 pig farms that use food waste for feed to upload video footage to ensure proper handling, about 27 farms uploaded video records for less than 60% of their actual waste processing.

Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) and Agriculture Minister Chen Jun-ji (陳駿季) were questioned by lawmakers at the Legislative Yuan on Tuesday over the government’s response to African swine fever and changes to food waste management.

Cho said that more than 60% of Taiwan’s food waste had been used as pig feed. With the temporary ban on using food waste for that purpose, incineration and landfills have become the main disposal methods. He warned that this could lead to a long-term increase in household waste.

According to the environmental ministry, Taiwan generates more than 11 million tonnes of general waste and about 770,000 tonnes of food waste annually. The ministry will work with local governments to promote circular-use solutions, such as composting, converting food waste into bioenergy for power generation, and producing sustainable aviation fuel.

Chen said the number of pig farms using food waste as feed has dropped significantly over the past six years, with Taoyuan and Pingtung each having 98 such farms, the most in the country. He added that feeding pigs with food waste can be an effective approach if it is properly managed or processed into feed.