Made-in-China fears grip US
Monday, 25 June 2007
WASHINGTON, June 24 (AFP): China, a traditional source of cheap goods, has become an alarmingly top exporter of tainted and dangerous products to the United States, triggering concerns among consumers and regulators.
Reports of tainted pet foods, dangerous toys, fake drugs, toxin-coated monkfish and cosmetics, drug-laced frozen eel, illicit pesticide-laden mushrooms and other products have led to recalls and bans and potentially more stringent import and food safety laws.
Thousands of cats and dogs died recently after eating food made from wheat gluten spiked with melamine, a chemical used in fertilizers, prompting one of the largest pet-food recalls in US history.
Made-in-China toothpaste have also been blacklisted, fearing it may contain a potentially deadly chemical reportedly found in tubes sold in Australia and elsewhere.
The concerns were compounded by the recall last week by a US company of 1.5 million of the wildly popular "Thomas and Friends" wooden train toys manufactured in China coated with potentially poisonous lead paint.
Chinese-made fireworks for the July 4 US Independence Day celebrations have also made it onto the blacklist, with reports that at least two types of such explosives have been recalled amid worries they could "travel in unexpected and dangerous directions" and pose "special hazards to eyes and bystanders."
"I think we have reached a point unfortunately where 'made in China' is now a warning label in the United States," said Democratic Senator Richard Durbin, a top campaigner in the US Congress for tighter food safety laws.
The Illinois lawmaker and another senator, Rosa DeLauro from Connecticut, held joint talks with US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Andrew von Eschenbach and the Chinese ambassador, Zhou Wenzhong, in Washington over the contaminated shipments of food products from China.
They secured a commitment from the Chinese government and the FDA that they would work towards a mutual agreement to improve inspections and overall safety of food products and drugs, said a statement from the two senators. "This proposed agreement between the FDA and the Chinese government is a significant breakthrough in terms of food safety and American consumers stand to be the big winners," Durbin said.
Reports of tainted pet foods, dangerous toys, fake drugs, toxin-coated monkfish and cosmetics, drug-laced frozen eel, illicit pesticide-laden mushrooms and other products have led to recalls and bans and potentially more stringent import and food safety laws.
Thousands of cats and dogs died recently after eating food made from wheat gluten spiked with melamine, a chemical used in fertilizers, prompting one of the largest pet-food recalls in US history.
Made-in-China toothpaste have also been blacklisted, fearing it may contain a potentially deadly chemical reportedly found in tubes sold in Australia and elsewhere.
The concerns were compounded by the recall last week by a US company of 1.5 million of the wildly popular "Thomas and Friends" wooden train toys manufactured in China coated with potentially poisonous lead paint.
Chinese-made fireworks for the July 4 US Independence Day celebrations have also made it onto the blacklist, with reports that at least two types of such explosives have been recalled amid worries they could "travel in unexpected and dangerous directions" and pose "special hazards to eyes and bystanders."
"I think we have reached a point unfortunately where 'made in China' is now a warning label in the United States," said Democratic Senator Richard Durbin, a top campaigner in the US Congress for tighter food safety laws.
The Illinois lawmaker and another senator, Rosa DeLauro from Connecticut, held joint talks with US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Andrew von Eschenbach and the Chinese ambassador, Zhou Wenzhong, in Washington over the contaminated shipments of food products from China.
They secured a commitment from the Chinese government and the FDA that they would work towards a mutual agreement to improve inspections and overall safety of food products and drugs, said a statement from the two senators. "This proposed agreement between the FDA and the Chinese government is a significant breakthrough in terms of food safety and American consumers stand to be the big winners," Durbin said.