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AFIA applauds safer Chinese feed

American Feed Industry Association (AFIA) President Joel Newman extended congratulations to Chinese and US officials responsible for signing a historic agreement this week aimed at enhancing the quality of feed and food shipped here from China.

Six months in the making, the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) signed on Dec. 11, 2007 will result in a legally binding set of commitments from China.

Newman said, "This agreement is a major step toward realizing the feed safety objectives of the Association."

The MOA was signed in Beijing in advance of the third session under the United States-China Strategic Economic Dialogue.

It provides for a bilateral mechanism to ensure the safety of feed and food products shipped to the US from China. Implementation will begin with a select set of products, including pet foods and wheat and rice gluten.

Key highlights

• Chinese firms exporting to the US must register and submit to annual inspection to insure the products meet FDA standards.
• AQSIQ (Administration of Quality, Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine) will notify FDA (Federal Drug Administration) of all firms that fail inspections or discontinue registration.
• AQSIQ will implement a tracing and tracking system from production of raw materials to export of finished product.
• AQSIQ will implement a statistical based sampling program of products for export.
• Certified Chinese products will be issued a certificate with a unique number that China will also supply to FDA.
• FDA will develop a system to notify China of non-registered products or those without certificates arriving at US ports.
• Each country will mutually notify the other within 48 hours of contamination incidents.
• FDA will be given greater access to Chinese facilities for inspection.
• An AQSIQ/FDA Working Group will be established to implement the agreement.

Tags · AQSIQ · China · Feed Quality · emorandum of Agreement · FDA

14.12.2007. 01:51

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