The State Council Issued the 13th Five-Year Plan for National Food Safety

On February 21, 2017, the Chinese State Council issued the 13th Five-Year Plan for National Food Safety. The plan will be implemented during 2017-2020. In these four years, there are many targets need to be completed.

1. Development Goals

I. Food safety sampling covers all food categories and varieties.

CFDA will uniformly organize relevant departments of all regions to carry out food inspection. Every year, the inspected food amount should be no less than four per thousand persons. Among them, the amount for pesticide and veterinary drug residue inspection should be no less than two per thousand persons. The results will be disclosed to the public.

II. Agricultural source pollution will be effectively managed.

Coverage rate of pest control for main crop diseases can be more than 30%. Utilization rate of pesticide shall be more than 40%. The overall qualified rate of main agricultural products shall be more than 97%.

III. Food safety on-site inspection will be strengthened

The team with professional inspectors shall be basically built. The procedures will be standardized. The inspection of food producers and traders should be carried out at least once a year.

IV. Food safety standards will be greatly improved.

Draft and revise no less than 300 national food safety standards. Draft and revise, evaluate and transform more than 6,600 pesticide residue limits and more than 270 veterinary drug residue limits. Product standards cover all daily food, including agricultural products and dietary food for special crowd. Limit standards cover all approved pesticides, veterinary drugs and related agricultural products. Test methods gradually cover all the limit standards.

V. Food safety supervision and technical support capacity will be significantly improved.

The equipment for inspection should be standardized. Food safety inspection ability can meet the national construction standards. Inspection of imported and exported food can maintain international level.

2. Key Points in Main Mission

I. Strict supervision of special food

Promote health food registration and filing system reform, improve health food health function directory and scientifically adjust function expression. Formulate health food raw materials directory and available and forbidden substance list of health food. Crack down on health food false propaganda, commercial fraud, the behavior that tricking consumers to purchase and other illegal activities. Strengthen the strict management of product formula registration of formula food for special medical purpose and infant formula milk powder.

II. Strict supervision of imported and exported food safety

Carry out imported food safety assured project and strengthen the port inspection and quarantine, including implementing imported and exported food safety risk early warning system and import and export enterprise credit record system, establishing imported food safety supervision and inspection plan and risk monitoring plan, strictly implementing overseas imported food production enterprises registration, strengthening the inspection and quarantine supervision of cross-border e-commerce imported food.

III. Improvement plan of imported and exported food safety supervision

China will carry out food safety system assessment and retrospective inspection to 50 countries (regions) that mainly export food to China. Supervision and inspection covers all product categories. 20 designated ports for entry inspection and quarantine of imported food will be established.

IV. Severely punish illegal behavior

Focus on the punishment of "hidden rules" that endanger food safety and related violations. The illegal behavior includes ultra-range use of food additives, use of industrial gelatin in food production, use of industrial alcohol in alcoholic food production, use of industrial sulfur in food fumigation, illegal use of clenbuterol, illegal addition of poppy shells and other substances in food production process, illegal addition of malachite green and other prohibited substances in aquatic products, production and operation enterprises false labeling production date and expiry date, using recycled food as raw materials to produce food and health food publicity fraud in label.

CIRS comments:

1. After the 13th Five-Year Plan for National Food Safety comes into operation, the supervision of food safety will be more comprehensive, strict and standardized, especially the "hidden rules" that endanger food safety.Enterprises should not have fluky mentality and should strengthen their food safety realistically.
2. Over 7,000 product standards, limited standards and testing methods will be drafted, revised, evaluated and transformed. Enterprises should pay attention to the release of new standards, timely update the databases of their own to prevent unnecessary punishment and losses.
3. Under the strict supervision of imported and exported food safety, import and export enterprises are suggested to strengthen self-inspection. On the one hand, it can help to import and export food successfully and avoid rectification and punishment. On the other hand, it is conducive to credit construction and would help the enterprise establish a good image in the mind of consumers.

If you have any needs or questions, please contact us at service@cirs-group.com.

Reference