Climate Change Administration

To deepen the nation's transition toward sustainable living, the Ministry of Environment (MOENV) and the Ministry of Agriculture today (February 25) jointly held the press conference, “A New Milestone for Agricultural Product Carbon Footprints: A Green Transition for Sustainable Living,” formally unveiling the concrete results of cross-ministry cooperation in promoting carbon footprint labels for agricultural products. Through three major initiatives — streamlining procedures, introducing digital tools, and offering subsidy incentives — the government is guiding producers toward a low-carbon transition. Starting this year, products that have obtained carbon footprint labels will be formally included within the scope of “Government and Enterprise Green Procurement,” implementing carbon-reduction governance from the source and encouraging the public to practice sustainable living.

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In her remarks, Chen Shu-ling, Chief Secretary of the Ministry of Environment, said that the core goal of the joint effort by MOENV and the Ministry of Agriculture to promote the agricultural carbon footprint system is to build an “affordable and workable” certification environment and process. Currently, about 100 agricultural and specialty products — including rice, eggs, fruits, and vegetables — have obtained carbon labels. Because such products are diverse in type and produced on a small scale, calculating their carbon footprints is more complex than for industrial products. This round of reform simplifies the product category rules for the grains and vegetables category and introduces the Ministry of Agriculture's digital inventory system to lower the barrier to participation for businesses. Carbon footprint labels translate emissions information into concrete terms, helping the public compare products and prioritize low-carbon, locally produced options — linking low-carbon production with sustainable consumption.

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More importantly, MOENV announced that, starting this year, carbon footprint–labeled products will be formally included within the scope of green procurement. According to the ministry's statistics, green procurement spending in 2024 reached NT$89 billion, of which agricultural and specialty products accounted for less than 1% — leaving substantial room for growth. Chief Secretary Chen emphasized: “We will harness the strong purchasing power of government agencies and civic organizations to drive market demand for carbon-labeled products, allowing environmental policy and agricultural policy to reinforce one another and achieve a win-win between carbon reduction and economic development.”

The press conference also featured two leading companies that were early adopters of product carbon footprint labels, sharing their experience. Q-YO Bio-Technology (蕈優生物科技) described how it uses smart production management to implement low-carbon production from the source through inventory assessment. Leezen (里仁事業), meanwhile, showcased how retail channels can use green marketing to guide consumers toward purchasing carbon-labeled products. The practical experience of both companies fully demonstrates the feasibility of Taiwan's agricultural supply chain working together to reduce carbon emissions.

The Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Environment jointly emphasized that, in the face of global climate change and pressure to reduce carbon emissions, promoting low-carbon production and green consumption has become an inevitable trend. The government will continue to refine the voluntary product carbon footprint system and, through cross-ministry collaboration, not only help the public access product carbon information but also hope to build consensus among government, industry, academia, and the public to jointly create a resilient, sustainable homeland.