Hong Kong Takes Preventative Measures in Response to a UK Food Safety Scandal

www.scmp.com: 7.27.14

Marks & Spencer, a grocery chain in Hong Kong, moved quickly to remove produce sourced from 2 Sisters Food Group even after UK's Food Standards Agency approved the two accused plants as satisfactory in an audit. 

Indeed the produce which Marks & Spencer ultimately pulled were not even imported from the two suspected plants, but by the 26th after reports of reusing dirty poultry and improper storage were already being made public, the grocery chain removed and sealed half a tonne of poultry. 

In the UK, this also has not stopped major supermarkets such as Tesco and Sainsbury’s from rushing to conduct independent testing of their meat produce. 

Tune in to Voice of America (July 29th): OSI-Husi

Eric Wu, GFSF Director, to appear on Voice of America call-in show tomorrow (July 29th) morning to discuss the OSI-Husi disclosures.

 Food Safety incidences is unfortunately an all-too-familiar problem in China, but this time around the consequences of the Shanghai Husi Food Company have caused ripples not only across the country but into the offices of multi-billion, global corporations. Executives have issued public apologies, international fast-food restaurants have scrambled to check and re-check their ingredients, and consumers are left wondering whether Western fast-food chains can be trusted again. Tune in tomorrow morning to hear Eric Wu discuss what is currently going on in the food safety realm in China and its impact on the food industry.

China revisits Fast-Food Food Safety Concerns

The Shanghai Husi Food Company has been accused of supplying contaminated meat to two major fast food restaurants in the city, KFC and McDonald’s, and possibly affecting chains Pizza Hut, Papa John’s International, and Burger King. After a local television station, Dragon TV, ran an investigative report on Husi employees using expired meat and then packaging it for shipment, the government closed its operations and local officials immediately began notifying restaurants to check their products

 Accounting for more than 8,000 restaurants in the country, KFC and McDonald’s yet again must deal with the food safety issue that sparked consumers’ concerns back in 2012. During that year, the concern was over fast-food meat that was quickly produced with high levels of antibiotics and then supplied to two American fast-food chains, one Japanese chain, and one Taiwanese restaurant. For now, the government has closed Shanghai Husi Food Company and KFC and McDonald’s has issued statements expressing their apologies and assurances that they will investigate the matter further with authorities. 

Codex Alimentarius Commission: New Maximum levels set for Lead and Arsenic

www.foodnavigator-asia.com: July 17, 2014

   

"Codex Sets New Maximum Levels for Lead and Arsenic"

This week, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization and WHO have added new regulations to the Codex Alimentarius, setting maximum limits for lead and arsenic in food products. In infant formulas, the limit of lead should be no more than 0.01 mg/kg and for arsenic the level should not rise above 0.2 mg/kg. As one of the main staples in Asia, contaminated rice has the potential to affect a larger population more severely since the crop absorbs the chemical more readily than others. Lead on the other hand is a naturally occurring element that could end up in the ingredients of infant formulas if producers are not careful in screening their sources.  

Abbott and Fonterra Looking to Expand Dairy Production in China

www.foodnavigator-asia.com: July 14, 2014

The demand of the middle-class in China for dairy products such as cheese and milk, is one of the reasons Abbott and Fonterra have formed a partnership to invest USD $300 million towards dairy farms. Their plan is to capitalize on both companies’ experiences working in business development and the milk industry and to provide safe products for Chinese consumers. FoodNavigator Asia notes that this project could result in the creation of up to 5 dairy farms producing a total maximum of 160 million liters per year. If Chinese regulators approve Abbott and Fonterra’s plans, the dairy plants could be producing as early as 2017. 

Global Food Safety Forum Youtube Channel

GFSF recently posted new videos on its Youtube channel featuring last month's 2014 GFSF Summit in Beijing, China. Interested in what some of the leading food industries have to say about food safety? We invite you to stop by and listen to our posted talks: GFSF Youtube Channel

China Food Safety Law and Liability (update)

"Liability insurance proposed for food industries"
  www.chinadaily.com.cn: July 3,2014

The future of food safety in China will not simply include harsher fines and penalties for trespassers of FDA regulations. As the review of a draft amendment to the Food Safety Law at the end of June demonstrated, another focus will be getting the food industry to look into liability insurance programs.  The safety benefits would accrue to the consumer, especially if the government requires high risk industries (ex. meat and dairy corporations) to purchase insurance for their products- thus subjecting the companies to further insight from their insurers. On the same note, if the government were to require liability insurance, consumers could face increased prices since companies would be paying more for insurance. For now, China FDA is promoting insurance plans among select food companies rather than making it mandatory because of cost concerns.

Opinions on the Food Safety Law Draft

 www.chinadaily.com: 2014-07-02 

"Opinions Solicited on Food Safety Law"

Yesterday, China began taking public opinions on the Food Safety Law draft which involved enacting stricter penalties for lawbreakers. The current penalties listed under the Law do not have a strong enough deterrence, according to the head of China’s Food and Drug Administration, Zhang Yong. Specific fines that the industry can expect include:

·        

•          Reparations worth 3 times the loss consumers suffer from unsafe food
•          Fines that are 30 times more expensive than the product      
•               Raising the maximum ceiling for fines on products less than $1,60
•           Lawbreakers being subject to demotion, dismissal, criminal penalties

California citrus to China remains temporarily restricted

China banned California products in April 2013 after brown rot was found in its shipments. The resumption of California citrus exports to China is still on hold after a meeting between Chinese and American officials. U.S. officials hoped the meeting would finalize a proposed agreement allowing California citrus back into China. Unfortunately, Nelsen said, there’s still work to be done. “They were positive about they saw, they said the right things, but it didn’t conclude as we had hoped.


We had hoped to have a signed agreement.” One sticking point, Nelsen said, was a disagreement over the level of standardization growers and packers need to observe to prevent brown rot. The Chinese are more used to a regimented approach, Nelsen said. “They wanted more specific language for protocols.” USDA and California officials tried to convince the Chinese official that that wasn’t always possible, what worked for one grower or packer, Nelsen said, didn’t necessarily work for others. The Chinese officials said they would relay that information to their government and give a response soon, Nelsen said.