A Flavor Revolution in Taiwan Agriculture

This month we visit farmers across Taiwan who are revitalizing traditional produce into brands that are taking the market by storm, in a movement that is a microcosm of the transformation and upgrading of industries islandwide.

In terms of flavor creativity, one has to mention the cilantro of Changhua’s Bei­dou Township. In Taiwan’s traditional small eateries, cilantro has always been used as a green garnish. However, young farmers and businesses in Beidou, Taiwan’s largest cilantro production area, have launched a culinary revolution that puts cilantro front and center, developing various new cilantro-­flavored products and treats. This is successfully shifting cilantro from a supporting to a starring role.

This kind of creativity is also showcased in ideas for handling agricultural waste. In Changhua’s Shetou Township, a bastion of guava production, the farmers’ association has devised a number of processed products to utilize subprime guavas. They include refreshing popsicles made with a combination of ‘Perfume’ and ‘Pearl’ guavas, and tea made from the buds and leaves of ‘Pear’ guava trees. Such products give high economic value to former waste materials.

The kumquat industry of Chiayi’s Min­xiong Township has also undergone an astonishing transformation. To make the best of these small fruits with “sweet rinds, tart juice, and bitter seeds,” the younger generation are leveraging technology to achieve use of the whole fruit, and have departed from old-fashioned sweet–sour processed products to create bite-sized kum­quat pastries and kumquat-flavored coffee with a distinctive hipster vibe. Their products are now even sold in overseas supermarkets. Kumquats, which have been cultivated locally for nearly 90 years, have become a fashionable sensation.

Even our most commonplace staple food is enjoying a beautiful makeover. The farmers’ association in Chishang, Taitung County, has developed premium-quality snack foods based on Grade 1 rice that bring in more than NT$100 million a year. They include light, crispy, aromatic rice crackers, and instant rice soup that is targeted at late-night snacking and young people. Thus they have created a “value-­added miracle” for locally grown rice.

Behind these remarkable products, we see not blind following of trends, but the indomitable resilience and inexhaustible creativity of Taiwan agriculture in the face of today’s challenges. We invite you to join us in sampling these clever, innovative foods and enjoy the lingering taste of the “pride of Taiwan.”