EDITORIAL from the Korea Times on Sept. 29)

Food Scare
Time to Better Protect Public From Tainted Chinese Goods

Consumers not only in South Korea but also around the globe are increasingly
concerned about Chinese food amid the widening scandal over tainted milk products
that killed at least four babies and made over 54,000 children sick. First of
all, the Chinese dairy company Sanlu is totally responsible for manufacturing and
selling powered milk tainted with the harmful chemical melamine. The manufacture
has gone too far in seeking profit at the expense of consumers' health and life.
Chinese health authorities are also held responsible for their negligence in
enforcing stricter regulations to ensure food safety. The scandal erupted about
two weeks ago when melamine, which is used to make plastics and fertilizer, was
found in milk power and was blamed for causing kidney stones in children. It is
still difficult for Chinese officials to calm the global scare about the
contaminated milk products.
Against this backdrop, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao promised Saturday to improve
food safety. He told the World Economic Forum in Tianjin that his government
would work to instill business ethics in light of milk contamination and previous
product safety disasters. He said the incident ``has revealed to us that in the
process of development, the government should pay more attention to business
ethics and social morality." But many people around the world are skeptical about
his promise since China still has a long way to go for enhanced food safety.
China cannot easily shake off its tarnished image as an exporter of products
ranging from harmful toothpaste and lead-tainted toys to pet food containing
toxic ingredients. A string of scandals over food and other consumer products
continued to take place even after Zheng Xiaoyu, former head of the State Food
and Drug Administration, was executed on conviction of taking bribes from
pharmaceutical companies in return for approving dangerous drug products. In
short, such scandals cannot disappear without rooting out corrupt officials and
money-blinded entrepreneurs in China.
In particular, South Koreans are more worried about food safety because about 80
percent of the nation's food supply comes from foreign imports. More than 50
percent of food imports are from China. The Korea Food and Drug Administration
(KFDA) has so far found three Chinese-made food products tainted with melamine.
They include the ``Misarang Custard" biscuit produced in China and sold by South
Korea's Haitai Confectionery and Food. Melamine was also detected in vegetable
creamer used in instant coffee mixes. The Seoul government imposed a ban on all
Chinese products containing milk.
More worrisome is that the KFDA expects to find five to 10 more Chinese food
products containing melamine as 302 items are under scrutiny. Many consumers in
the country are reminded of earlier Chinese food scandals involving fish
containing lead, kimchi laced with parasitic eggs, and a snack with rodent parts.
Every time these scandals occur, the KFDA is criticized for taking belated and
insufficient action to ensure food safety.
On Sunday, the Lee Myung-bak administration and the governing Grand National
Party decided to take a series of consumer protection measures, including a class
action suit for victims and tougher screening of imports. We hope the country
will set up a more efficient and integrated regulation and supervision system to
ensure the safety of food and other consumer products. The ideal system is to
prevent the influx of harmful or substandard goods into the country. It is also
urgent to create a speedy recall system to protect consumers from already
circulated products.
(END)