Panic buying of toilet paper starts over rumors that raw supplies are being exhausted to make face masks

Taiwan News
Date: 2020/02/10
By: Keoni Everington, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — In response to rumors that toilet paper supplies were running low because they were being used to make face masks, the government on Friday (Feb. 7) said that the materials used in the two products are different and supplies of toilet paper are abundant.

Due to fears about the outbreak of the Wuhan virus in Taiwan, the past few weeks have seen a mad run on face masks, but supplies heavily depleted and rationing implemented. Rumors started to spread on social media last week that the panic buying of face masks had exhausted the raw materials for toilet paper, diapers, and sanitary wipes as well, threatening to repeat the frenzy over the Great Toilet Paper Panic of 2018.

However, the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) on its Facebook page on Friday said that the materials used to produce surgical face masks are different from those used to make toilet paper. It said that masks are made from non-woven fabric, while more than 70 percent of toilet paper is made from staple fiber pulp.

As to rumors that imports of toilet paper were becoming scarce because of the Wuhan virus outbreak in China, the MOEA said that Taiwan does not import toilet paper or the raw materials to make it from Communist China. The MOEA said that most of the pulp to make toilet paper comes from Chile and Brazil, and international pulp supplies have increased recently, while prices have gone down.    [FULL  STORY]