http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/06/06/business/food.php
China tightens food safety regulations By David Barboza Published: June 6, 2007 Esteban Felix/AP Chinese-made toothpaste seized in Nicaragua because of safety concerns. SHANGHAI: Responding to intensifying international concerns about tainted food and counterfeit drugs, China has announced that it is overhauling its food and drug safety regulations and will introduce nationwide inspections. The announcement, which came late Tuesday from the State Council, the country's highest administrative body, was the strongest signal yet that Beijing was moving to crack down on the sale of dangerous food and medicine and also trying to allay fears that some of its exports posed health problems. The action follows a series of embarrassing episodes this year involving China's export of contaminated pet food ingredients and toothpaste. The shipments of tainted pet food ingredients led to one of the largest pet food recalls in U.S. history. Last month, several countries, including the United States, Nicaragua and Panama, recalled or issued warnings about toothpaste made in China because it contained a toxic chemical called diethylene glycol. While Beijing has strongly defended the quality and safety of its food and drug exports, and even denied that the toothpaste it exports is unsafe, Chinese regulators have stepped up safety inspections and shut down companies accused of producing unsafe food or counterfeit drugs. But with pressure growing from regulators in the United States, Europe and other parts of the world, and international food companies expressing concern about the risks of importing Chinese-made food and feed ingredients, Beijing is pushing for a more forceful response to the crisis. In its announcement Tuesday, posted on a government Web site, China said that on April 17 the State Council had approved a new food and drug safety guarantee system, and that an outline of the new program was being distributed to government agencies nationwide. The government held no news conference to announce the changes. But according to the program, by 2010 the government plans to place new controls on food and drug imports and exports, to step up random testing on medicines and have inspection information on 90 percent of all food products. There are also plans for safety checks on a large majority of food makers and for regulators to crack down on the sale of counterfeit drugs and medical devices. The government did not indicate if it would provide more money for the efforts or which agencies would carry out the bulk of the functions. In announcing the new measures, the government hinted at its weaknesses in enforcement, saying that after five years, one goal was that "100 percent of the significant food safety accidents are investigated and dealt with" and that "80 percent of the food that needs to be recalled is recalled." A few weeks ago, the government announced that for the first time it was planning to set up a food-recall system. Food and drug safety experts and analysts in China have long complained about an incredibly flawed system that has led to food scares or mass poisonings tied to counterfeit or substandard medicines on the market. Much of the blame has centered on weak enforcement of the nation's food and drug regulations, as well as corruption, bribery and a business culture in which counterfeiting thrives. China's Food and Drug Administration, which is supposed to safeguard health, has also been implicated. Last week, China sentenced Zheng Xiaoyu, a former head of the agency, to death after he pleaded guilty to bribery and corruption and was blamed for approving unsafe medicines. Several other agency officials have also been detained or sentenced. Some experts say the new food and drug safety program suggests that China's top leaders are taking up the call for reform. "There's been concern for a while about food safety in this country, and now that there are growing concerns about China's international image, the State Council has decided to act," said Russell Leigh Moses, a China specialist based in Beijing. "This may be a sign that everyone in the government ought to get in line." But the challenges facing China are enormous because its regulatory system is weak and enforcement is particularly difficult, partly because the economy is growing so fast and also because local officials accept bribes and sometimes allow small companies to flout regulations. Also, regulators here say many exporters of food and medicines are mislabeling goods and shipping them illegally. Now, food regulators in Europe, Japan and the United States, as well as international organizations, are lobbying China to act quickly to strengthen its controls and prevent further damage to its image and its food and drug exports. "These are issues China has to deal with over time," said Rio Praaning, secretary general of the Public Advice International Foundation in Belgium, an advisory group that is working on food and drug safety issues around the world. "But we can't wait. We have interim developments. We have patience, but frankly patience is out the window when people start dying." [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Post message: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe : [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe : [EMAIL PROTECTED] List owner : [EMAIL PROTECTED] Homepage : http://proletar.8m.com/ Yahoo! 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