Food boom brings unpalatable truths

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Food boom brings unpalatable truths

 

http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/food-boom-brings-unpalatable-truths/2007/04/28/\

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Disaster … a woman cries after thousands of fish died of unknown pollution at

her aquaculture farm in Hangzhou a day before World Environment Day last

year.

Photo: Reuters/China Dai

 

April 28, 2007

 

China's huge food export market could be making the world sick, write Ariana

Eunjung Cha in Shanghai and Kelly Burke.

 

SOMETHING was wrong with the babies. The villagers noticed their heads were

growing abnormally large while the rest of their bodies were skin and bones. By

the time Chinese authorities discovered the culprit - severe malnutrition

from fake milk powder - 13 had died.

 

The scandal unfolded three years ago after hundreds of infants fell ill in

eastern China and became the symbol of a broad problem in China's economy.

Quality control and product-safety regulation are so poor in this country that

people cannot trust the goods on store shelves.

 

Until now, the problem has received scant attention outside China. In recent

weeks, however, consumers everywhere have been learning about China's safety

crisis. Tainted ingredients that originated there made their way into pet food

that has sickened and killed animals around the world, with nearly 4000 deaths

reported in the US. Although no animal deaths have been reported in

Australia, high-end pet food products imported from the US have also been pulled

from

Australian shelves.

 

With China playing an ever-larger role in supplying food, medicine and animal

feed to other countries, recognition of the hazards has not kept up.

 

By value, China is the world's No.1 exporter of fruits and vegetables, and a

major exporter of other food products ranging from apple juice to garlic and

sausage casings. Its agricultural exports to the US surged to $US2.26 billion

last year - nearly 20 times the $US133 million of 1980. China's food exports to

Australia were worth $450 million in 2006, up from $345 million the previous

year, and dominated by prawns, cereal, fruit juice and vegetables.

 

China has been especially poor at meeting international standards. The US

subjects only a small fraction of its food imports to close inspection, but each

month rejects about 200 shipments from China, mostly due to concerns about

pesticides, antibiotics and misleading labelling. In February, border inspectors

for the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) blocked peas tainted by

pesticides, dried plums containing banned additives, pepper contaminated with

salmonella and frozen crayfish that were filthy.

 

The Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service samples 5 per cent of food

imports and a spokesman said although the overall number of rejections were

small, " the major cause of rejections of imports from China are heavy metals and

pesticides " .

 

Since 2000, some countries have temporarily banned whole categories of

Chinese imports. The European Union stopped prawn shipments because of banned

antibiotics. Japan blocked tea and spinach, citing excessive antibiotic residue.

And

South Korea banned fermented cabbage after finding parasites.

 

As globalisation of the food supply progresses, " the food gets more anonymous

and gradually you get into a situation where you don't know where exactly it

came from and you get more vulnerable to poor quality " , said Michiel Keyzer,

director of the Centre for World Food Studies at Vrije University in Amsterdam.

 

Chinese authorities, while conceding that the country has many safety

problems, say other countries' assessments of products are sometimes " not

accurate " .

They have implied that the bans may be politically motivated, aimed at

protecting companies that compete with Chinese businesses.

 

China's State Food and Drug Administration, Ministry of Health and Ministry

of Agriculture, which along with other government agencies are responsible for

monitoring food and drug safety, this week declined to answer written

questions.

 

But reflecting anxiety over food safety issues and increasing international

pressure, President Hu Jintao on Wednesday urged the farming sector to improve

food safety and develop the organic sector, state media reported. Hu promised

stricter rules on growing and processing, the People's Daily reported.

" Without agricultural standardisation, there can be no agricultural

modernisation and

no assurance of food safety, " he said.

 

More than 100 brands of pet food have been recalled in the US since March 16

because of a rise in animal deaths, generally from kidney failure. The recall,

one of the largest yet, ranged from mass-market brands sold in stores like

Wal-Mart to the pricey brands sold by veterinarians.

 

Why the food is killing pets is still unclear, but the FDA and a manufacturer

in South Africa have found that several bulk ingredients shipped from China,

including wheat gluten and rice-protein concentrate, were contaminated with an

industrial chemical called melamine.

 

Concern about animal safety has become concern about risk to people, after

the melamine was also found in livestock feed. US food authorities have

identified 6000 pigs in at least seven states that might have consumed

contaminated

pet food. The animals would be put down to ensure they did not enter the human

food supply, the FDA said this week. Officials also believe some chickens might

have eaten contaminated food, and US inspectors will travel to China to

inspect factories.

 

The investigation is unearthing details of the food chain previously unknown

to most consumers, including the international dealings that determine how

ingredients make their way into the food supply. Food companies are under

relentless pressure to cut costs, in part from consumers who demand low prices.

Obtaining cheap ingredients from China has become a key strategy for many.

 

China's Government has found that firms cut corners in virtually every aspect

of food production and packaging, including improper use of fertiliser,

unsanitary packing and poor refrigeration of dairy products.

 

William O'Brien, the president of Hami Food of Beijing, which transports food

for McDonald's and other multinational companies, said that in some of his

competitors' operations, " frozen products very often come in taxi cabs … That

is

something that people should worry about. "

 

Last year farmers raising duck eggs were found to have used a red dye to make

the yolks look redder, fetching a higher price. The dye was a cancer-causing

substance not approved for human consumption.

 

The Chinese Government overhauled its monitoring system by dispatching state

inspectors to every province and launching spot inspections at supermarkets.

 

Studies have found China's 200 million farmers often have little

understanding of correct chemical or antibiotic use. And the small-time traders

who

dominate the market do not exchange documentation with buyers.

 

In response to the pet deaths, China is carrying out a nationwide inspection

of wheat gluten but has rejected claims its companies are responsible for the

deaths. Authorities also say China has never sent wheat gluten abroad for use

as a pet-food ingredient. That has raised the question of whether companies

that bought the gluten are guilty of misusing it.