Chinese legislators delivered a report Wednesday to a bimonthly session of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC), the top legislature, which unveiled several major issues with food safety in China.
On behalf of a team of legislators who conducted a national inspection on the implementation of food safety laws from March to May, Lu Yongxiang, vice chairman of the NPC Standing Committee, gave the report at the meeting, attended by Wu Bangguo, the country's top legislator.
Authorities have further boosted supervision and regulation efforts to ensure food safety in 2011. However, even though great achievements had been made, there are still a few outstanding problems, Lu said, citing the report.
Lu said that there was a lack of understanding of laws, and some food manufacturers continue to act in an underhand and dishonest fashion. Also, some local government agencies had failed to fulfill their duties in fighting and containing illegal practices in the food sector, he added.
The system of regulations and standards is still not complete, he said.
Other problems include shortage of inspection instruments, loopholes in the supervision system and inadequate publicity of laws and regulations, according to the report.
The inspection on the implementation of food safety laws from March to May was the second such organized by China's NPC Standing Committee, after China's food safety law took effect in June 2009.
Legislators in the report also offered suggestions on improving the country's food safety situation.
The State Council should work to better coordinate supervisory duties and efforts among different government agencies and be more strict with local authorities' fulfillment of their duties in ensuring food safety, according to the report.
Special attention should be directed to decrease the overlapping duties among different government bodies and make up for the loopholes in the food safety supervision system, Lu said.
"For example, for those catering firms who make and sell food completely by themselves, the duties of the supervisory bodies should be clearly assigned," he said, citing the report.
Authorities should aim to establish a scientific and efficient long-term mechanism in China that focuses on food safety supervision in a regular and comprehensive manner, according to the report.
More support in terms of personnel, equipment and money is needed for food inspection agencies among grassroots-level governments, Lu said.
The State Council and government departments are urged to target the initial stages of food production and step up crackdowns on illegal use of non-edible materials and overuse of food additives in animals cultivation and food processing.
More government support should be poured into the fundamental research concerning food safety and toward forming a modern, standard market of food products, Lu said, quoting the report.
The report also calls for study of the potential danger that may arise from new technologies and ways of food producing and processing, as well as to improve the country's capability to check and assess food safety risks.
Further, initiatives should be introduced to mobilize the public and news media to report food safety accidents in a timely and responsible manner, according to the report.