Posted on 06/04/2007 5:01:28 AM PDT by GFritsch
Fish products consumed by Americans treated with dangerous drugs, chemicals
WASHINGTON – China, the leading exporter of seafood to the U.S., is raising most of its fish products in water contaminated with raw sewage and compensating by using dangerous drugs and chemicals, many of which are banned by the Food and Drug Administration.
The stunning news follows WND's report last week that FDA inspectors report tainted food imports from China are being rejected with increasing frequency because they are filthy, are contaminated with pesticides and tainted with carcinogens, bacteria and banned drugs.
China has consistently topped the list of countries whose products were refused by the FDA – and that list includes many countries, including Mexico and Canada, who export far more food products to the U.S. than China.
While less than half of Asia has access to sewage treatment plants, aquaculture – the raising of seafood products – has become big business on the continent, especially in China.
In China, No. 1 in aquaculture in the world, 3.7 billion tons of sewage is discharged into rivers, lakes and coastal water – some of which are used by the industry. Only 45 percent of China has any sewage-treatment facilities, putting the country behind the rest of Asia.
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According to a new report by Food & Water Watch, the aquaculture industry crams fish and shellfish into facilities to maximize production, generating large amounts of waste, contaminating water and spreading disease if left untreated. The industry tries to control the spread of bacterial infections, disease and parasites by pumping the food supplies with antibiotics and the waters with fungicides and pesticides.
Many of the products used are banned in the U.S. Traces of these drugs have been showing up increasingly in imports – especially from China.
"In addition to potentially making people sick, overuse of such drugs is contributing to antibiotic resistance, a growing public health concern in a variety of foods," says Food & Water Watch in its report "Import Alert: Government Fails Consumers, Falls Short on Seafood Inspections."
But the grave news on China's seafood exports is worsened by the FDA's inability to inspect imports. The percentage of important seafood shipments with samples taken for laboratory inspection has decreased over the past four years, from 0.88 percent in 2003 to 0.59 percent in 2006 – this while seafood consumption in the U.S. was rising and more of that seafood was coming from China.
China became the leading exporter of seafood to the U.S. in 2004 – and amounts are rising fast. Chinese imports were up 14 percent in 2005 and 23 percent in 2006. This year, so far, they are up 34 percent over 2006.
"China's imports of aquaculture products are increasing despite the country's history of violations for veterinary drug residues," says Food & Water Watch. "Between 2003 and 2006, 35 percent of all refusals for veterinary drug residues were found on shipments from China. In 2006, 62.4 percent of all refusals for veterinary drug residues came from there."
Every year, one in four Americans is afflicted with a food-borne illness, with seafood being responsible for about 18 percent of 20 percent of those cases – or 15.2 million.
"The Food and Drug Administration can't find what it's not looking for," says Food & Water Watch executive director Wenonah Hauter. "FDA's appalling record on inspecting seafood imports is irresponsible and poses a real threat to both the health of the American public and to homeland security."
Meanwhile, as the heat on China's export policies increases, Beijing is adamant that it is doing nothing wrong, and brands warnings issued by U.S. officials irresponsible – as in the case the latest scare over toothpaste contaminated with diethylene glycol.
"So far we have not received any report of death resulting from using the toothpaste," fumed China's General Administration of Quality Supervision. "The U.S. handling (of this case) is neither scientific nor responsible."
The FDA issued a warning Friday after toothpaste containing DEG was detected in a shipment seized at the border. The government says at least 100 people died after taking cough syrup containing DEG, an industrial solvent used in paint and antifreeze.
China's dismal drug-safety record was underscored this week by a Chinese court's decision to sentence to death the country's former top drug regulator.
Mmmmmmm.....globalism.
I don’t want to make anyone sick, but when I went over there, I was warned to be prepared for certain smells that you don’t smell in the U.S. It was common to see men and women alike, just stop and squat down on the sidewalk or street to relieve themselves.
I always ask whoever is manning the seafood counter. Some stores, Publix comes to mind, label each pile of fish with the country of origin.
Nothing here, move along!
It's very difficult to find what you need that's made in the USA, but I try hard.
I bought a bathroom scale for our residence in Florida then found out when I got it home that it was made in China and cost $29.99.
I bought another for a residence in the North for $9.99 which was made in the USA!
If we can manufacture bath scales by ourselves it's too damned bad we can't make anything else.
In 1946 this nation was the envy of the world. We manufactured everything imagineable and then managed to ship and sell our goods overseas.
There wasn't a country in the world that didn't have Packards, Fords, Chevys, etc. rolling down their roads. Philco radios, etc. were in many foreign households. Even our toasters could be found everywhere in the world.
Now, thanks to our monstrous central government and their rules and regulations designed to shove us into third world status, the manufacturers, eager to make profit and thwart the union messes they helped create, are moving our importatant industries as fast as they possibly can.
This manuevering will come back to bite them in the ass, but, unfortunately, our asses will get chewed to ribbons as well.
Meanwhile, if you want English, press 1.
I have been in Chinatown asian grocery stores where they had huge buckets on the floor with unidentifiable gray seafood in them. Just on the floor, no ice or refrigeration. I guess it’s sort of tame compared with what you witnessed, and in a different country, but it speaks to the same thing: no concern for cleanliness. These people have, by their filthy lifestyles, caused the deaths of people and probably thousands of birds. Now this with the fish. Where is PETA when we really need them!
While my cab filled up with at the hidden gas station, I observed people raking garbage on the street into a smelly pile. There were people scrambling to pick up what was edible, including old watermelon rinds. The cab driver told me he could have gotten into trouble for letting me out there to take pictures.
So port-shopping's no longer prevalent...?
They also use human skin for makeup (2005): Chinese cosmetics firm using skin from executed prisoners “A Chinese cosmetics company is using skin harvested from the corpses of executed convicts to develop beauty products for sale in Europe, an investigation by the Guardian has discovered.
Agents for the firm have told would-be customers it is developing collagen for lip and wrinkle treatments from skin taken from prisoners after they have been shot. The agents say some of the company’s products have been exported to the UK, and that the use of skin from condemned convicts is “traditional” and nothing to “make such a big fuss about.”
http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2005/09/14/2003271560
They’re responsible for ALL flu. It all comes from China. They live with pigs and ducks in the house, and their kids don’t use diapers, they go in the street.
Correct. Unfortunately, I have a bag of shrimp from China in my freezer. Didn’t read past the “packaged for a Seattle Company” label to see the “product of China” label.
China is an excellent country with which to exercise 'free' trade.
Meanwhile, back to our only ally Taiwan, we occasionally throw them a clean, well-picked over bone left over from the turkey we gave China.
They live with pigs and ducks in the house, and they have no regard for the health or quality of life for these animals they live so closely with. They live worse than animals - animals do better because if they didn’t they would have died off years ago, all of them.
PING!
The Bush administration has prevented the FDA from allowing proper labeling of food products.
I don’t know whether this article is scarier than the many comments posted here....LOL
NOT a laughing matter is it?
I do find these threads do keep my mind off war, elections, terrorists, Putin and Iran and their nukes, immigrants...oh well back to real life...dirty dishes to clean, laundry to fold!
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