BEIJING - CHINA, which has weathered a series of scandals over food
safety, has put 12 US food products on a 90-day import alert after they
were found to contain a banned dye or excessive additives or
preservatives.
The import alert comes as the US maintains a ban on imports of food from China, unless they can show they are free of dairy or free of melamine.
The compound, used in making plastic, was added to Chinese baby formula, killing at least six Chinese infants and making hundreds of thousands sick.
Earlier in the week, China's General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ) impounded and destroyed Italian brandy, Spanish dairy products, Belgian chocolate and seasoning from Britain. -- REUTERS
Oh Lord. It's the bit about Belgian chocolate that got me going. Actually, I don't like the idea of destroying "Italian brandy" either - would that be grappa? Seriously, this is one of China's sillier efforts in its tit-for-tat approach to international trade. Anyone who knows Belgian chocolate (thanks to Chocolate.com for the above display) knows that it's among the world's purest - and tastiest.
In the United States, even before the Federal Food and Drug Administration was thought of, there was the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture:
Over the years, many consumers across the U.S. have come to recognize the small print on many food product labels "Reg. Penna. Dept. Agr." (Registered Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture). Historically, Pennsylvania has been known to have some of the more exacting food manufacturing regulations in the U.S. If food manufacturers registered their products in Pennsylvania, this was indication they met requirements in other states.
That was before China's exacting standards became the norm. Who knows, we may all have to add melamine to food to receive the "Reg. Peking Dept. Agr." seal of approval. Maybe the Irish got their chemical substances confused when they added dioxin, and not melamine, to their animal feed.
As long as the Belgians don't cravenly cave to the Chinese, their chocolate should be just fine.