China To Set Up Widespread Product Tracking System
ChinaTo Set Up Widespread Product Tracking System
According to Chinese official media, China’s product quality watchdogs, the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ), the Ministry of Commerce, and the State Administration for Industry and Commerce, plan to institute a new product identification and tracking system for nine categories of consumer products by June. The categories include food, cosmetics, home appliances and farming goods.
The reports state that the tracking system will involve the inclusion of a code on product labels that will allow the tracking of the product through the entire production and distribution process. For example, consumers at supermarkets will be able to take a product to a kiosk in supermarkets, scan the label, and review product information and the source. AQSIQ claims the system is already being used for products from over 32,000 manufacturers.
Chinese media reports have also stated that some large food companies, including some prominent international brands, have written letters opposing the system, claiming it will add costs to producers without providing safety assurances and useful consumer information. Moreover, the huge database required to track billions of individual products will be operated not by AQSIQ, but by China Credit Information and Technology, a company in which AQSIQ is a shareholder. Manufacturers will be required to pay China Credit an annual fee, unlikely to be large, to cover the costs of operating the database.
USMEF notes that China has already pledged full traceability for its exported food products in a White Paper published last August. The text of the White Paper is online.
Industry News
Surface Transportation Board Plans Two-Day Hearing
Outrage over rail service and charges, according to the Agriculture Transportation Coalition (AgTC), has reached the point that the Surface Transportation Board is conducting a two-day public hearing, April 24-25, on rail service and railroad's common carrier obligations. Many ag interests are testifying, and the AgTC is submitting comments as part of various groups.
A video broadcast will be accessible via the Surface Transportation Board ‘s Web site under "Information Center"/"Webcast"/"Live Video." More information and a list of witnesses who will testify at the hearing are online at the AgTC page of www.USMEF.org.
ChinaTo Set Up Widespread Product Tracking System
According to Chinese official media, China’s product quality watchdogs, the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ), the Ministry of Commerce, and the State Administration for Industry and Commerce, plan to institute a new product identification and tracking system for nine categories of consumer products by June. The categories include food, cosmetics, home appliances and farming goods.
The reports state that the tracking system will involve the inclusion of a code on product labels that will allow the tracking of the product through the entire production and distribution process. For example, consumers at supermarkets will be able to take a product to a kiosk in supermarkets, scan the label, and review product information and the source. AQSIQ claims the system is already being used for products from over 32,000 manufacturers.
Chinese media reports have also stated that some large food companies, including some prominent international brands, have written letters opposing the system, claiming it will add costs to producers without providing safety assurances and useful consumer information. Moreover, the huge database required to track billions of individual products will be operated not by AQSIQ, but by China Credit Information and Technology, a company in which AQSIQ is a shareholder. Manufacturers will be required to pay China Credit an annual fee, unlikely to be large, to cover the costs of operating the database.
USMEF notes that China has already pledged full traceability for its exported food products in a White Paper published last August. The text of the White Paper is online.
Industry News
Surface Transportation Board Plans Two-Day Hearing
Outrage over rail service and charges, according to the Agriculture Transportation Coalition (AgTC), has reached the point that the Surface Transportation Board is conducting a two-day public hearing, April 24-25, on rail service and railroad's common carrier obligations. Many ag interests are testifying, and the AgTC is submitting comments as part of various groups.
A video broadcast will be accessible via the Surface Transportation Board ‘s Web site under "Information Center"/"Webcast"/"Live Video." More information and a list of witnesses who will testify at the hearing are online at the AgTC page of www.USMEF.org.