National rules

Can you sell backyard eggs in Taiwan?

Taiwan's food law binds businesses that sell food; registration applies only to announced types and sizes, and no small-seller exemption was found in the laws read. Poultry keepers at or above a set size register.

Read from 5 official sources27 passages quotedChecked October 29, 2026

At a glance

License

Depends how you sell

Small-flock line

Registration only for business types and sizes the central health authority announces; announcement not read

Farmers markets

Not stated

Cartons

Egg firms: single-use; home sale unclear

In plain English

The Act Governing Food Safety and Sanitation applies to food business operators, defined by activities that include selling food (Art. 3(7)), and they must meet the Regulations on Good Hygiene Practice for Food (Art. 8(1)). Registration before operating is required only for the categories and sizes the central health authority announces (Art. 8(3)); that announcement was not read. No provision on household or farm-gate egg sales was found in the Act, its Enforcement Rules, the Food Business Registration Regulations or the Good Hygiene Practice regulations, and whether a household keeper selling surplus eggs counts as a food business operator was not established.

A sourced reading of the rules in Taiwan, not legal advice. Rules change; confirm with the Ministry of Health and Welfare (衛生福利部) and municipal and county (city) governments (food safety); Ministry of Agriculture (農業部) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency and municipal and county (city) governments (animal health) before you sell.

Do you need a license?

Depends on how and how much you sellRegistration only for business types and sizes the central health authority announces; announcement not read
  • Food business operators are businesses engaged in making, processing, preparing, packing, transporting, storing or selling food, among other listed activities (Art. 3(7)); whether a household keeper selling surplus eggs is one was not established.
  • Operators of the categories and sizes announced by the central authority must apply for registration with the central or municipal or county (city) authority before operating (Art. 8(3)); selling is one of the registration categories.Food Business Registration Regulations Art. 4(1) item 4
  • Spoiled or rotten food may not be made, packed, stored, sold, given away or displayed.Art. 15(1) item 1
The exact wording
“經中央主管機關公告類別及規模之食品業者，應向中央或直轄市、縣（市）主管機關申請登錄，始得營業。”

Where you can sell

From home or the farm

Not stated

No rule on farm-gate egg sales was found in the texts read. The Act binds food business operators, and spoiled food may not be sold (Arts. 3(7), 15(1)).

Farmers markets

Not stated

No rule on selling eggs at markets was found in the texts read.

Stores and restaurants

Not stated

Rules for selling eggs to shops or restaurants were not found in the texts read.

Also check with: Municipal and county (city) governments (Act Governing Food Safety and Sanitation Art. 2)

Cartons, labels and handling

Cartons

Fresh poultry eggs must be loaded in single-use containers or packing materials (Statute for Prevention of Infectious Animal Diseases Art. 14(4)). Production-and-marketing operators who refuse to comply after being advised to, or break the rule again within a year, are fined NT$30,000 to 150,000 (Art. 45 item 5). Whether a household keeper selling surplus eggs is covered was not established.

“裝載生鮮禽蛋，應使用一次性之裝載容器或包材。”

Refrigeration

No storage temperature for shell eggs was found in the texts read (Act Governing Food Safety and Sanitation, its Enforcement Rules, Regulations on Good Hygiene Practice for Food). Food business operators that sell or store chilled or frozen food may not change the storage temperature the maker set (Good Hygiene Practice Arts. 2, 27); whether a household keeper selling surplus eggs is a food business operator was not established.

The label must show

  • Containers or outer packaging of food and food raw materials must clearly show, in Chinese and common symbols, the name; net weight, volume or number; the maker's or responsible domestic firm's name, phone number and address; place (country) of origin; expiry date; and nutrition labelling, among other listed items (Act Art. 22(1)).
  • Food displayed without packaging, or in packaging that is not tamper-evident, does not extend shelf life, is not sealed or is not meant to widen the area of sale, counts as bulk food (Enforcement Rules Art. 20). For specified bulk foods the central authority may require Chinese labelling of the name, origin, production or expiry date and other items (Act Art. 25(1)). Whether eggs a household keeper sells in a carton count as packaged food under Art. 22 or as bulk food, and whether eggs are a specified bulk food, was not established.

Grading

No grading rule for shell eggs was found in the texts read (the Act, its Enforcement Rules, the Food Business Registration Regulations and the Good Hygiene Practice regulations).

Washing

No washing rule for shell eggs sold direct was found in the texts read.

Pricing your dozen? The egg price calculator works it out from your feed bill.

Keeping chickens in Taiwan? →Registration, bird-flu housing orders and welfare rules, on their own page.Registration: conditions

Common questions

Can I sell eggs from my backyard chickens in Taiwan, and do I need a license?
Taiwan's food law binds businesses that sell food; registration applies only to announced types and sizes, and no small-seller exemption was found in the laws read. Poultry keepers at or above a set size register. Small-flock line: registration only for business types and sizes the central health authority announces; announcement not read. The conditions, and the law they come from, are on this page.
Can I sell eggs at a farmers market in Taiwan?
Not stated in the sources we read. No rule on selling eggs at markets was found in the texts read. Also check with Municipal and county (city) governments (Act Governing Food Safety and Sanitation Art. 2).
Can I reuse egg cartons in Taiwan?
Taiwan's animal-disease law says fresh poultry eggs must be loaded in single-use containers or packing materials (Statute for Prevention of Infectious Animal Diseases Art. 14(4)), and production-and-marketing operators who refuse to comply after being advised to, or break the rule again within a year, are fined NT$30,000 to 150,000 (Art. 45 item 5). Whether a household keeper selling surplus eggs is covered was not established; ask the local animal disease control authority. The rule reads: "裝載生鮮禽蛋，應使用一次性之裝載容器或包材。"
What has to be on the carton label in Taiwan?
Containers or outer packaging of food and food raw materials must clearly show, in Chinese and common symbols, the name; net weight, volume or number; the maker's or responsible domestic firm's name, phone number and address; place (country) of origin; expiry date; and nutrition labelling, among other listed items (Act Art. 22(1)). Food displayed without packaging, or in packaging that is not tamper-evident, does not extend shelf life, is not sealed or is not meant to widen the area of sale, counts as bulk food (Enforcement Rules Art. 20). For specified bulk foods the central authority may require Chinese labelling of the name, origin, production or expiry date and other items (Act Art. 25(1)). Whether eggs a household keeper sells in a carton count as packaged food under Art. 22 or as bulk food, and whether eggs are a specified bulk food, was not established. The rule reads: "食品及食品原料之容器或外包裝，應以中文及通用符號，明顯標示下列事項："
Do eggs I sell in Taiwan have to be kept cold?
In short: No storage temperature for shell eggs was found in the texts read (Act Governing Food Safety and Sanitation, its Enforcement Rules, Regulations on Good Hygiene Practice for Food). Food business operators that sell or store chilled or frozen food may not change the storage temperature the maker set (Good Hygiene Practice Arts. 2, 27); whether a household keeper selling surplus eggs is a food business operator was not established.
Sources
Read the 27 passages this page is built on
What we couldn't confirm
  • The announcement of which food businesses must register (Act Governing Food Safety and Sanitation Art. 8(3)) was not read; ask the municipal or county (city) health bureau.
  • Whether a household keeper selling surplus eggs counts as a food business operator was not established.
  • Whether eggs a household keeper sells in a carton count as packaged food under Art. 22 or as bulk food, and whether eggs are a specified bulk food with labelling rules under Art. 25, was not established; no grading rule for shell eggs was found in the texts read.
  • The single-use rule for containers carrying fresh eggs (Statute for Prevention of Infectious Animal Diseases Art. 14(4)) is penalised for production-and-marketing operators (Art. 45 item 5); whether a household keeper selling surplus eggs is one was not established.
  • The keeping scale at or above which poultry keepers must register a livestock farm (Animal Industry Act Art. 4) was not read; ask the municipal or county (city) agriculture department.
  • Whether chickens may be kept at a particular property was not established from the national texts read. Keeping poultry that hinders nearby hygiene is banned in designated cleanup areas, which local environmental protection bureaus and township offices designate (Waste Disposal Act Arts. 3, 5, 27), so check with them.
  • Current bird-flu measures are not stated here; check the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency's domestic outbreak page and the local animal disease control authority before acting.
  • The laws were read in the Ministry of Justice laws database, where the agriculture Acts still name the Council of Agriculture as the central authority; the database notes that jurisdiction changes after the government reorganisation are shown in each law's amendment history.

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