6 ms·
> There is fear of food fraud (fillers and ingredients sold as other things) for example from chinese imports. Apparently this fear exists within China as well
by nickles 8y ago
> There is fear of food fraud (fillers and ingredients sold as other things) for example from chinese imports.
Apparently this fear exists within China as well, especially for baby formula. This stems from the 2008 milk scandal. That incident had 300k victims, hospitalized 54k babies, and killed 6. Four years prior 12 babies died from watered down milk [0].
In 2007, pet food produced in China killed ~3600 pets around the world after being contaminated. On further investigation, the FDA later determined that 2.5mm to 3mm Americans had consumed chickens who had been fed tainted vegetables imported from China [1].
In 2003, the State Food and Drug Administration was created to improve safety of the food supply. However, it seems that individual farmers may not be incentivized to make safety improvements, as produce from multiple farms is typically combined prior to being sold to distributors [2]. There have been several publicized incidents since 2003, often involving counterfeit or contaminated foods [3].
I'd argue it's entirely rational to have concerns about the safety of these goods, especially since Chinese companies (as recently as 2014) have demonstrated they are willing to export unsafe and expired goods internationally.
[0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2008_Chinese_milk_scandal https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2008_Chinese_milk_scandal
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007_pet_food_recalls https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007_pet_food_recalls
[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Food_safety https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Food_safety
[3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Food_safety_incidents_in_China https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Food_safety_incidents_in_China
- FabHK 8y ago> the 2008 milk scandal. In the wake of that, so many Chinese came to Hong Kong to buy milk powder that a new law was introduced in HK restricting its export (to 1.8 kg per person), with violations punishable by 60,000 USD or 2 years prison :-) (promptly giving rise to baby formula smuggling rings, naturally...)
- beat 8y agoThe USA used to have problems like that too (read The Jungle, by Upton Sinclair, and many other works). The public demanded change, and got it. The same thing will happen in China. It's all part of the process of modernization.
- 1024core 8y agoUnfortunately, in China, the public does not have much of a voice.
- jdietrich 8y agoThe Chinese government are legitimately afraid of political speech. Consider for a moment what that implies about the balance of power between the governed and the government. China has no equivalent of Fox News or MSNBC, but that does not mean that the Chinese people are voiceless.
- leereeves 8y agoIs that fear because of the balance of power or the consequences of losing power? In the US, losing power means looking for a new job, or retiring with a pension. I believe the consequences of losing power are typically worse in China.
- joe_the_user 8y agoThese problems don't fix themselves automatically. In the US, it required regulations and the creation of institutions like the FDA. These will remain sufficient to prevent further abuse hinges on the combination of regulatory institutions and the press (who reports grievous abuse when regulators allow grievous abuse, given regulatory capture is a constant threat). China's press and public institutions seem to be getting weaker and weaker. Thus things may or may not get better.
- beat 8y agoI'm not saying it's automatic. I'm saying it's inevitable. It took decades to get decent safety standards in the USA (one could argue we're still working on it). But a government that doesn't do basic things to protect its citizens risks its own legitimacy. And contrary to popular opinion here, the Chinese government has legitimacy, not just brute force. The people trust it to do the right thing most of the time, eventually.