Negotiations on a trade in goods agreement with China should be halted, protesters said yesterday, warning that food safety, and the interests of farmers and small businesses would be jeopardized if talks continue as they are.

Representatives from the Economic Democracy Union, Taiwan March and other groups gathered outside the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) to protest what they called a lack of transparency in the talks, following a meeting between MAC Minister Andrew Hsia (夏立言) and China’s Taiwan Affairs Office Minister Zhang Zhijun (張志軍) on Wednesday.