Ick: GP claims pesticides found on Wal-Mart, Ito Yokado produce
2010-03-16 08:48:32Source:Global TimesAuthor:
Retail giants Wal-Mart and Ito Yokado were among the supermarkets found selling genetically modified food products currently forbidden in China and pesticide and insecticide tainted veg-etables and fruits to Chinese consumers, Green Peace (GP) said at a press conference held yesterday, World Consumer Rights Day.
GP made 83 random samplings of items including rice, vegetables and fruits last October and November at 19 supermarket chain-stores, such as Wal-Mart, Ito Yokado, Auchant and Tesco in eight cities including Beijing, Tianjin, Wuhan and Changsha.
GP would not disclose the name of the third party testing agencies it used, saying they had requested anonymity, but said the tests showed Wal-Mart sold genetically modified rice in one of its Changha, Hunan Province stores.
Production and commercialization of genetically modified rice is not allowed in China, according to the Ministry of Agriculture.
An Ito Yokado Huatang store in Chengdu, Sichuan Province was also found selling genetically modified papaya, which is only allowed to be grown in an area of Guangdong Province for industrial use, said Wang Weikang, a food and agriculture campaigner at GP.
Apart from the genetically modified rice and papaya, many supermarkets had serious problems related to pesticides being on randomly sampled vegetables and fruits, such as cowpeas and strawberries, according to GP. One example was that the strawberries sold in the Beijing Ito Yokado Xizhimen store contained the pesticide methamidophos, strictly forbidden in China.
"Wal-Mart and Ito Yokado could have been able to provide safe foods," Wang said. Wal-Mart made a promise to British consumers that it wouldn't sell any genetically modified products. Ito Yokado also has a very sound product recall and control system in Japan, but has different practices in China, she said.
"There are strict rules on food safety nowadays in China. We cherish our credit and reputation and can't deliberately violate the rules and sell the products having known the pesticide problem," said Li Zhisheng, a PR spokesman for Beijing Ito Yokado Huatang.
"The pesticide was used during the farming, and that's not what we are supposed to be responsible for," Li said, adding the store requires that their suppliers have qualifications for production and safety.
Though the supermarkets are equipped for fast inspections with devices provided and required by responsible industrial and commercial bureaus, it's impossible to check every product because there are too many, Li said.
"We can't monitor the farmers, and even if we do, what we have seen is no problem," Li noted.
Currently, under Chinese food safety rules, farming and production are subject to the supervision of the Ministry of Agriculture, while the circulation of farm products is under the supervision of various industrial and commercial bureaus.
Wal-Mart's public relations staff said the company was investigating the case but failed to comment in time for this report.
Other stores GP identified as having pesticide and insecticide problems are ParknShop, Ourlotus, Vanguard and Zon100.
GP made 83 random samplings of items including rice, vegetables and fruits last October and November at 19 supermarket chain-stores, such as Wal-Mart, Ito Yokado, Auchant and Tesco in eight cities including Beijing, Tianjin, Wuhan and Changsha.
GP would not disclose the name of the third party testing agencies it used, saying they had requested anonymity, but said the tests showed Wal-Mart sold genetically modified rice in one of its Changha, Hunan Province stores.
Production and commercialization of genetically modified rice is not allowed in China, according to the Ministry of Agriculture.
An Ito Yokado Huatang store in Chengdu, Sichuan Province was also found selling genetically modified papaya, which is only allowed to be grown in an area of Guangdong Province for industrial use, said Wang Weikang, a food and agriculture campaigner at GP.
Apart from the genetically modified rice and papaya, many supermarkets had serious problems related to pesticides being on randomly sampled vegetables and fruits, such as cowpeas and strawberries, according to GP. One example was that the strawberries sold in the Beijing Ito Yokado Xizhimen store contained the pesticide methamidophos, strictly forbidden in China.
"Wal-Mart and Ito Yokado could have been able to provide safe foods," Wang said. Wal-Mart made a promise to British consumers that it wouldn't sell any genetically modified products. Ito Yokado also has a very sound product recall and control system in Japan, but has different practices in China, she said.
"There are strict rules on food safety nowadays in China. We cherish our credit and reputation and can't deliberately violate the rules and sell the products having known the pesticide problem," said Li Zhisheng, a PR spokesman for Beijing Ito Yokado Huatang.
"The pesticide was used during the farming, and that's not what we are supposed to be responsible for," Li said, adding the store requires that their suppliers have qualifications for production and safety.
Though the supermarkets are equipped for fast inspections with devices provided and required by responsible industrial and commercial bureaus, it's impossible to check every product because there are too many, Li said.
"We can't monitor the farmers, and even if we do, what we have seen is no problem," Li noted.
Currently, under Chinese food safety rules, farming and production are subject to the supervision of the Ministry of Agriculture, while the circulation of farm products is under the supervision of various industrial and commercial bureaus.
Wal-Mart's public relations staff said the company was investigating the case but failed to comment in time for this report.
Other stores GP identified as having pesticide and insecticide problems are ParknShop, Ourlotus, Vanguard and Zon100.
