| 'Chinese-free'
nutrition labels are a good idea
By Michael Sharp
October 3, 2007 | Food For Health International, an
Orem dietary supplement company, recently led the way
in improving customer awareness by adding to their nutrition
labels the words, "Chinese-Free." Until the
FDA can increase regulations on dangerous Chinese imports,
this is the direction industry needs to go in order
to help consumers decrease their risk of ingesting harmful
food.
Currently there are 4,500 companies from China recklessly
exporting $4 billion worth of foodstuffs to the United
States each year. This number would be higher, except
for the 257 shipments of Chinese food products that
are rejected each month by FDA inspectors.
China has more rejected shipments than ALL other countries
combined.
These shipments are rejected for everything from harmful
dyes used to make rotting fruit more appealing, to seafood
shot up with antibiotics to hide the fact that they
were grown in sewage water. Shouldn't we know whether
the shrimp on our plate was recently swimming with feces?
Now give credit where credit is due. Thanks to these
hard working FDA inspectors, 257 shipments of contaminated
Chinese products are left out of our shopping carts.
But what filth is slipping through the cracks?
William Hubbard, a former FDA deputy commissioner, admitted
that only 1 percent of all imports are inspected. Makes
you think twice about opening that bottle of apple juice.
(Which happens to be China's No. 1 food export to the
United States.)
Opponents of "Chinese Free" state companies
displaying such claims are xenophobic capitalists, trying
to muscle out Chinese competitors. While it is difficult
to see how dedication to safe products signifies xenophobia,
there is certainly no reason that a company shouldn't
be able to make some profits back from using higher
regulated products when they are paying up to five times
the price for safe ingredients.
Admittedly the best solution to the problem is to actually
fix the problem. Last week the Grocery Manufacturers
Association proposed a very well thought out plan, involving
requirements for all food companies importing goods
to the U.S. meet FDA regulations.
Until the government hops on board with this novel idea
that food imported to the U.S. should meet U.S. standards,
the best the food industry can do is help consumers
know where their food is coming from. Then Americans
have the choice not to expose themselves to filthy food.
NW
RB
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