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BIZCHINA / Center

Food safety in rural areas to be scrutinized

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2007-09-02 08:49

China will launch a nationwide inspection on food safety in its rural
areas and urban-rural conjunctive regions, according to a notice released
by China's food and drug watchdog on Friday.

As a part of a four-month nationwide campaign to improve the quality of
goods and food safety in China, the special inspection will target
"small-sized food companies, workshops and restaurants in rural areas,"
in an effort to eradicate hidden dangers of food accidents, the notice
said.

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The State Food and Drug Administration (SFDA) said that by the end of
2007, the governments at township and county levels must establish food
accident response systems.

Local governments should shoulder their responsibilities to discover,
report and handle food safety accidents timely through the systems.

Compared with citizens in the affluent urban areas, people in China's
rural areas are easier to be victims of inferior goods and unsafe food
because of lax supervision and financial difficulties.

The SFDA also asked local food and drug agencies to severely punish those
who engage in producing and marketing fake or substandard goods.

Late last month, the Chinese government started a four-month nationwide
campaign to improve the quality of goods and food safety.

The campaign will target farm produce, processed food, catering sector,
drugs, pork, imported and exported goods and products in close link to
human safety and health.

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