QUOTE
May 30, 2007
Amid revelations that Chinese beef is processed in poor hygienic conditions, Korean lawmakers want to strengthen consumers’ right to know by expanding place-of-origin requirements on imported beef.
Korea bans raw beef from China, where livestock diseases have frequently erupted, such as the latest case of foot-and-mouth disease reported in northeastern Gansu Province in January.
But pasteurized Chinese beef packed in cans and pouches is permitted, which has led to a surge of such imports in recent years as a substitute for raw beef. Most Seoul restaurants reportedly depend on packaged Chinese beef, but conditions of its production are appalling and consumers buy it with little knowledge of possible threats, Rep. Park Jae-wan of the Grand National Party said.
According to a report from Park’s office, which last week inspected several Chinese factories in Shandong Province, many of them failed to meet international hygiene standards.
Many factories registered with the Korean Food and Drug Administration were paper companies whose buildings were dismantled long ago or located at false addresses, the report said.
One processing company in Qingdao, which did not exist at its registered address, was in fact located inside a Chinese military unit. Another company in Laixi had a pig pen and piles of excrement next to the beef processing plant. Most of the vehicles used to transport the beef to processing factories were unrefrigerated.
A group of lawmakers led by Park plans to present revisions to the Food Hygiene Law and the School Food Service Law in June, requiring that food service facilities bigger than 300 square meters clarify the place of origin of their beef ingredients.
The bill will stop short of seeking limits on Chinese beef imports, Park’s office said.
“It will be difficult to place a ban on it, because free trade is our government’s policy. But at least the place of origin should be made public so that consumers can choose what they eat based on the information,” said Lee Kwang-ho, a political attache to Park who led the inspection trip.
Thanks to the growing demand for cheap canned beef, China is technically the third-largest beef exporter to Korea after New Zealand and Australia, Lee said. Korea imported $17 million in Chinese canned beef, or 12 million kilograms, up considerably from 1.9 million kilograms or $2.8 million in 2003, according to the Food and Drug Administration.
Amid revelations that Chinese beef is processed in poor hygienic conditions, Korean lawmakers want to strengthen consumers’ right to know by expanding place-of-origin requirements on imported beef.
Korea bans raw beef from China, where livestock diseases have frequently erupted, such as the latest case of foot-and-mouth disease reported in northeastern Gansu Province in January.
But pasteurized Chinese beef packed in cans and pouches is permitted, which has led to a surge of such imports in recent years as a substitute for raw beef. Most Seoul restaurants reportedly depend on packaged Chinese beef, but conditions of its production are appalling and consumers buy it with little knowledge of possible threats, Rep. Park Jae-wan of the Grand National Party said.
According to a report from Park’s office, which last week inspected several Chinese factories in Shandong Province, many of them failed to meet international hygiene standards.
Many factories registered with the Korean Food and Drug Administration were paper companies whose buildings were dismantled long ago or located at false addresses, the report said.
One processing company in Qingdao, which did not exist at its registered address, was in fact located inside a Chinese military unit. Another company in Laixi had a pig pen and piles of excrement next to the beef processing plant. Most of the vehicles used to transport the beef to processing factories were unrefrigerated.
A group of lawmakers led by Park plans to present revisions to the Food Hygiene Law and the School Food Service Law in June, requiring that food service facilities bigger than 300 square meters clarify the place of origin of their beef ingredients.
The bill will stop short of seeking limits on Chinese beef imports, Park’s office said.
“It will be difficult to place a ban on it, because free trade is our government’s policy. But at least the place of origin should be made public so that consumers can choose what they eat based on the information,” said Lee Kwang-ho, a political attache to Park who led the inspection trip.
Thanks to the growing demand for cheap canned beef, China is technically the third-largest beef exporter to Korea after New Zealand and Australia, Lee said. Korea imported $17 million in Chinese canned beef, or 12 million kilograms, up considerably from 1.9 million kilograms or $2.8 million in 2003, according to the Food and Drug Administration.
http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2876167
