Taiwan has been a major supplier of edamame to Japan, with an export amount valued at 1.7 billion NT dollars last year. And farmers in Kaohsiung have recently planted a new kind of edamame that has the aroma of taro.

After being harvested, the edamame beans are sent to the processing plant to be boiled and frozen.

Taiwan's edamame beans are renowned for their quality, and 80% of the beans grown in Taiwan are exported to Japan.

Taiwan has a dominant market share in Japan's edamame bean market, and exports totaled 1.7 billion NT last year.

Apart from superior management and technology, local farmers are also renowned for the development of new varieties.

The new Kaohsiung No. 10 variety, for example, has the light aroma of taro.

Farmers receive licensing fees when they sell these varieties domestically and abroad, but many varieties are still secretly exported to China, Thailand, and other countries.

The Council of Agriculture says that even if Taiwan's edamame varieties are leaked, the technology and management in other nations still can't compare to that of Taiwan,

and that the quality of Taiwan's beans will always be superior and more competitive.

At the same time, both the government and farmers say that Taiwan's varieties require regulation and protection.