BEIJING, Sept. 4 -- Sun Zhengcai, the state agriculture minister, yesterday reassured consumers concerned about toxins in their food.
His message came as China launched a new program requiring all packaged food for export to have a quality guarantee label.
The quality of Chinese agricultural products is higher than ever before, Sun said in a statement on the ministry's Website.
Most produce is passing with flying colors.
For example, the average acceptance rate regarding pesticide residues in vegetables was 93.6 percent in the first half of 2007; those regarding clenbuterol hydrochloride contamination and sulfa drug residues in livestock products were 98.8 percent and 99.0 percent respectively, Sun said.
More than 99 percent of Chinese food exports to the United States, the European Union and Japan met quality standards over the last four years.
"Most Chinese farm products are safe and consumers don't need to worry when eating them," he said.
China will clamp down on food tainted with illegal or excessive chemicals.
From now on food packaged for export will not be allowed to leave the country if the product does not have an inspection and quarantine symbol, said the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection, and Quarantine in a separate announcement.
The new measures, which became effective on Saturday as part of a broader plan to improve quality standards, cover seafood, eggs, rice, vegetables, oil, wine and biscuits.
"The aim is to effectively curb illegal exports of food, protect the interests of legal export enterprises, strengthen consumers' confidence in the quality and safety of food made in China, and help trace and recall products that have problems," the supervisory agency said in a statement posted on its Website.
The agency also issued a notice yesterday for fruit exporters to participate in a registration system to ensure quality and safety.
Inspection and quarantine work will be strengthened.
Last Friday China put into effect its first recall system for unsafe food products, which will require manufacturers to stop production and sales, notify vendors and customers and report to authorities when product defects are found.
(Source: Shanghai Daily)