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 The State Council, in guidelines published on Tuesday, upgraded
surveillance measures for imported and exported goods and raised the
maximum acceptable limits of pesticide and antibiotic residues in
produce.
The plan requires 50 countries that export a high volume of food
products to China to make additional safety assessments and calls
for the construction of 20 ports designated for food inspection and
quarantine.
The revisions also require increased scrutiny of health food
products and infant milk formula.
China has bolstered safety regulation in previous years in reaction
to several high-profile food scares, including the discovery of
heavy metal products in rice in 2013 and chemical residue in infant
milk formula that led to several fatalities in 2008.
The latest regulations also commit to halting any further increase
in the use of harmful pesticides, urging producers to consider
organic alternatives, a move that is at odds with China's food
output needs.
A large majority of China's 11.8 million licensed food production
enterprises are small businesses with fewer than 10 employees, the
State Council said.
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It also said a boom in online food and drug sales had led to new
challenges in monitoring safety over the entire supply chain.
In the first three quarters of last year Chinese regulators found
more than 500,000 food safety violations.
(Reporting by Cate Cadell; Editing by Robert Birsel)
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