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China's Troubled Food And Drug Trade.

By Dan Harris and Steve Dickinson

Absolutely excellent article on the Council for Foreign Relations website on China food and drug safety. The article is entitled, "China's Troubled Food and Drug Trade" and it does a superb job explaining the food safety issues surrounding China food and drugs. The lawyer in me sees the following as the "money" quotes:

Some families have moved to sue the companies involved, though China's tort system only allows for direct economic damages. Such amounts are likely to be far smaller than the massive punitive damages allowed in the United States that often serve as a deterrent to companies. Market forces can still play a role in China. People's unwillingness to buy milk products over fear of which producers to trust has been a huge blow to the country's dairy industry. * * * * Liability issues for international companies using Chinese supplies are a growing concern. Jerome A. Cohen, a CFR adjunct senior fellow, writes that the liability for New Zealand firm Fonterra, a major investor in the Sanlu Group, is unclear. Cohen says the case offers a lesson for other foreign investors. Experts are also quick to point out that China's food problems mirror those that other nations have experienced, including the United States. They add, however, that China's massive growth in trade and the realities of globalization makes the country an exceptional case, increasing the urgency for Beijing to tackle its food problems.

The US consumer in me sees the following as the key:

In the United States, consumer groups have called for greater scrutiny of food imports by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The FDA currently inspects only a small portion (PDF) of food and drug imports. An FDA official told Congress in 2008 that the agency was moving to improve safety measures (PDF), particularly against terrorist threats from those who might purposely adulterate food. The official added that the FDA is working with the Chinese government to increase inspections. Of the inspections the FDA does conduct, food from India is more likely to fail than food from China. Illnesses from food in the United States more often originate domestically, U.S. congressional investigators said. The United States allows no imports of meat and poultry from China because U.S. law requires importers to meet the same standards as U.S. producers. The U.S. House Energy and Commerce subcommittee investigative report concluded that such a standard could not be imposed on all imported food but notes the import process can be made safer. The report also points to Japan and Hong Kong's import models as possible alternatives to the U.S. system. Japan, for example, inspects up to 16 percent of food from China and allows in food that originates only from a small number of certified farms and plants. But more stringent inspection regimes are not fool-proof. In 2008, hundreds of people in Japan fell ill from Chinese-made dumplings laced with pesticides, and Hong Kong found melamine-laden in milk products imported from the Chinese mainland.

The law firm marketer in me sees the need to call out the following paragraph as well:

In the United States, food safety is also enforced through a variety of other means, including a punitive torts system, independent media, and vigorous civil society organizations. These institutions in China are not nearly as powerful, though some analysts see signs of change. Steven M. Dickinson, a partner in the international law firm Harris & Moure who has spent the last five years in China, says local media played an unprecedented role informing the public during the 2008 milk scandal. Some critics, however, say the milk incident could have been dealt with months earlier and blame the country's focus on the Olympics for stifling early warnings.

It is truly a must read. And for those (like me) interested in food safety, I highly recommend the Barf Blog, which describes itself as "Musings About Food Safety and Things that Make You Barf." It makes salmonella and e.coli fun. I also recommend the MarlerBlog, written by renowned Seattle food safety litigator, Bill Marler.

Full post as published by China Law Blog on October 19, 2008 (boomark / email).