About 152,000 unlicensed food businesses were shut down last
year under a regime of tightened inspections which helped improve
food safety, a senior official said yesterday.
Official figures show that the industry and commerce
administrations at various levels last year made 10.4 million
inspections and uncovered problems in 360,000 food businesses -
comprising food processors, distributors, sellers and eateries.
In addition to those which were banned from operation, 4,629
businesses licenses were withdrawn, and the rest ordered to correct
their practices, said Li Dongsheng, vice-minister of the State
Administration for Industry and Commerce (SAIC).
He did not detail the problems which surfaced during
inspections.
Official figures also show that industry and commerce
authorities ordered the withdrawal of about 16,000 tons of unsafe
food products from the market last year. There were 63,065 consumer
complaints against food, down 2.8 percent over the previous
year.
"Fewer complaints show that the food market is in a better
shape," Li told a press conference organized by the State Council
Information Office.
Scandals involving substandard food were frequently reported by
the media last year, such as the red-yolk salted duck eggs
contaminated with an industrial dye and turbot fish containing
carcinogenic residue.
The issue burst into the international spotlight after tainted
additives exported from China contaminated pet food in North
America.
Li admitted that China does have problems with food safety, but
said they are not serious. "We should not exaggerate the problems
and cause public panic," he said.
He noted that the SAIC, responsible for the supervision of food
safety in the domestic market, is vigilant and strives to protect
consumers' rights. He said the administration would continue to
improve the recall and withdrawal system and set up a long-term
supervision mechanism.
However, Ye Zhihua, a senior researcher on quality standards and
testing technology with the Chinese Academy of Agricultural
Sciences (CAAS), worries that the large number of small food plants
and inadequate number of enforcement officers may prevent the
campaign from further success.
Preliminary statistics from the CAAS show that up to 80 percent
of 450,000 food-processing plants are small businesses with fewer
than 10 employees. Of the more than 10 million food businesses,
about 97 percent are small enterprises.
Ye said small food enterprises are usually dogged by poor
management, technology and sanitary conditions, and are spread
across the country, making supervision difficult.
(China Daily June 13, 2007)
