| China - Melamine and Pet Food Recalls |
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(Ottawa, May 10, 2007)… From the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA): Pet Food Recall and Melamine in Imported Products
www.inspection.gc.ca/english/fssa/concen/specif/vegproe.shtml
CHINA
Beijing admits guilt in pet-food scandal
Two food-export managers arrested as officials acknowledge companies illegally added chemical to product
GEOFFREY YORK
May 10, 2007
BEIJING -- When the pet-food scandal first erupted in March, China responded as usual: with stonewalling and denials.
Yesterday, China finally came clean. It announced a nationwide crackdown on the food industry, arrested the managers of two food exporters and admitted that the two companies had illegally added a chemical to food products that eventually caused the deaths of thousands of household pets in North America.
"The two companies illegally added melamine to the wheat gluten and rice protein in a bid to meet the contractual demand for the amount of protein in the products," China's quality-control agency said yesterday.
The melamine, a chemical normally used in plastics and fertilizers, was added to wheat gluten and rice protein, which was later mixed into pet food in North America. The chemical triggered a reaction that has been blamed for a wave of deaths and illness among dogs and cats in the United States and Canada.
The two Chinese exporters had concealed the chemical by labelling their products falsely, the Chinese regulatory agency said.
After U.S. investigators revealed the contaminated food products, the two Chinese companies denied any wrongdoing. And the Chinese regulator said China had never exported any wheat gluten to the United States or Canada.
The admissions yesterday were a dramatic shift from China's first reaction to the scandal. As recently as April 26, the Foreign Ministry was still arguing that there was "no clear evidence" of a Chinese connection to the deaths of pets in the United States.
But, under heavy pressure from the U.S., the Chinese authorities announced yesterday that police are launching legal cases against managers at the two exporters closely linked to the tainted food: Xuzhou Anying Biologic Technology Development Co. Ltd. and Binzhou Futian Biology Technology Co. Ltd.
In a statement on its website, the quality-control agency vowed to "deal strictly with the lawbreaking companies and those responsible."
In a separate announcement, China promised to strengthen its testing of food products, fertilizers, pesticides and animal medicines. Food exporters will be compelled to accept the "standards used in food-importing countries," the statement said.
The safety scandal, meanwhile, is continuing to expand. China's state media disclosed yesterday that former top drug regulator Zheng Xiaoyu will go on trial next week for taking up to $780,000 (U.S.) in bribes to approve untested medicines. One of the drugs he approved was an antibiotic that killed at least 10 people.
And in another revelation yesterday, The New York Times reported that Chinese producers may have intentionally added a second industrial chemical, cyanuric acid, to their animal-feed products to boost their profits. The chemical, used as a stabilizer in swimming pools, is often blended into animal feed by Chinese companies because it is a cheap way of artificially boosting the protein readings in the products, according to three chemical makers who were quoted in the report.
While the Chinese food-safety system is coming under intense scrutiny today as a result of North American pressure, the system has been killing many people in China for years with little attention from the West.
Three years ago, for example, at least 13 babies died of malnutrition in China because they were given fake milk powder. Hundreds of infants fell ill as a result of the fake milk, which was sold in rural markets in Anhui province.
When local officials finally took action, they arrested 47 people and discovered 45 types of substandard milk formula, which was being produced in more than 140 factories.
The tainted trail
How wheat gluten contaminated with melamine, a chemical found in plastics and fire retardants, found its way into feed distributed to fish farms across Canada.
CHINA
160 tonnes of Chinese wheat gluten was produced by Xuzhou Anying Biologic Technology Development Co. Ltd. in Jiangsu province, and possibly Binzhou Futian Biology Technology Co. Ltd. in Shandong province. Sixty tonnes of it - from Xuzhou Anying - was contaminated with melamine.
UNITED STATES
A company in St. Louis imported the 160 tonnes.
CANADA
Westaqua Commodity Group Ltd. bought the 60 contaminated tonnes of gluten and sold it to Skretting Canada. Skretting added the wheat gluten to fish feed, identified as Bio-Oregon brand, and shipped it to fish farms in Canada and to the United States.
SOURCES: CANADIAN FOOD INSPECTION AGENCY, WESTAQUA COMMODITY GROUP LTD, ASSOCIATED PRESS.
OTTAWA
CFIA - Pet Food Recall and Melamine in Imported Products
The following message was issued from the CFIA May 9, 2007, and is found in its entirety at www.inspection.gc.ca/english/fssa/concen/specif/vegproe.shtml
In March 2007, Menu Foods began recalling potentially affected pet food products as the result of reported pet deaths and illnesses.
Soon after, the United States Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) announced that wheat gluten and rice protein concentrate of Chinese origin was contaminated with melamine which may be present in a range of pet foods. Since that time, other national pet food brands have been recalled and the contamination of gluten and protein concentrate with melamine has resulted in a border lookout by U.S. and Canadian regulatory authorities. Most recently, the use of contaminated pet food in livestock feed in the U.S. has generated attention from U.S. and Canadian regulators. We have no evidence animals that may have consumed contaminated feed in the U.S. entered Canada.
The CFIA is reviewing its pet food responsibilities
In Canada, pet foods are regulated at three federal levels: the Canadian Food Inspection Agency regulates imports of pet food for the prevention of the introduction of a variety of animal diseases. Industry Canada administers regulations that establish basic labelling requirements for pet foods and other consumer products not covered by other regulations. Health Canada's Veterinary Drugs Directorate authorizes therapeutic claims for pet foods under the Food and Drug Regulations.
In light of the recent pet food recalls, the CFIA is reviewing its pet food responsibilities and programs to determine if room for improvement exists within the Canadian system.
Import Control Measures in Canada
Since the announcement by the USFDA that wheat gluten and rice protein concentrate were contaminated with melamine, and since learning that Chinese-origin corn gluten was also implicated in pet deaths and illnesses in South Africa, the CFIA took action, as described below.
Through investigation, the CFIA identified one shipment of vegetable protein shipped from one of the Chinese companies implicated in the pet food recall.
In addition, the CFIA issued a border lookout requiring holding and testing all shipments of wheat, rice, soy and corn gluten and protein concentrates entering Canada of Chinese origin. The CFIA is also tracking vegetable proteins of Chinese origin imported prior to the implementation of the CFIA's enhanced border controls to verify whether these ingredients have been utilised in food production.
This involves both the checking of all import documents as well as visual inspections at feed facilities.
Mitigation of risks associated with livestock consumption of contaminated feed
Recently, U.S. authorities took precautionary measures to prevent certain hogs and chickens that may have consumed livestock feed mixed with contaminated pet food from entering the food supply. The CFIA prohibits the use of pet food in livestock feed.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture has indicated that it will not certify animals that have been exposed to the contaminated feed or their products. This prevents them from being imported to Canada.
The CFIA continues to work closely with Health Canada and the U.S. food safety and animal health authorities as the pet food and related issues evolve.
CFIA's Country Approach
The CFIA's risk-based import inspection programs are based on internationally recognized standards and principles. The CFIA works with other governments, including the Chinese government, to verify that food products imported to Canada meet Canadian food safety requirements.
For more information, please contact Brian Rowe, General Manager Customs Consulting Services (905) 882-4880.
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