The China Syndrome (PART 1)
With a disapproving face akin to one sucking on a lemon, I return a graffitied pre-packed food to the shelf of my local supermarket. I had read the words ‘Made in China’ or PRC as they sneakily now write.
‘You sir, are just being a food snob’ – I hear echoing from the millennial lobe of my brain. You buy clothes, mobile phones, computers & furniture from the People’s Republic but suddenly not food? My imaginary friend has a point. Nearly everything we in the modern world buy, wear, work on and travel within has some part of it made in China. The great globalisation of our shrinking planet and demand for cheaper yet better things is to blame for the emergence of this outsourcing economy.
Or does the voice in my head have a point? Are foods made in China a cause for vicious concern?
The Naughty Corner
Plastic Rice
Made from potatoes and coated in a layer of resin for extra shine, maybe China’s most shocking export. Want something with a little more crunch, ask for the plastic bag variety (no really).
INDUSTRIAL Sea Salt
Table salt and industrial salt are two very different beasts. One is fine for dusting over your chips, the other is full of heavy chemicals and can make you go blind.
CHEMICAL COCKTAIL Fish
Love you fish & chips? Well in China our aquatic friends are farmed (placed in giant growing tanks). Whether it's the heavy chemical laced water they live in or the faece filled foods they eat – maybe it’s time to go vegetarian.
MUD Pepper
Whether you’re a fan of the black or white variety, buy Chinese and there’s a good chance you flavouring your meals with mud and chalk.
Tofu WITH BITE
Created by pressing and compacting the curd residue from soy milk, Tofu is a by product of fermentation. The Chinese have found a way to speed this process up by adding a touch of sewage – d..e..licious.
And the story continues across the board. Be it meat, veg, seafood to soya sauce – China has developed quite the reputation. Clearly then there is a problem with the image of Chinese sourced food stuffs. An almost bias and inherent presumption that the quality of food and any product from China is fake, low quality and frankly dangerous.
We aren’t the judgemental generation however. There must be reasoning behind the negative hype?
Regulations
Quite frankly there aren’t any. China is relatively new to the industrial food system the West has been operating over the past 50 or so years. As such one finds the lack of proper rules and inspections leading to more naughty food makers falling through the metaphorical net.
Not an Export Problem
Food produced in China for markets outside it’s borders will be heavily scrutinised before ending up on your supermarket shelf. Inspection galore means that most Chinese foods (not 100%) ending up in your local branch of Waitrose will be safe to consume.
The problem comes however for foods produced and eaten in China. Food inspection is weak, penalities are low and a maximise profit minimise lifespan culture means food quality needing to be questioned. And every so often some of this ‘for local consumption only’ foods end up in other countries, meaning we are all at a growing risk.’
THE REASONS
The 3rd largest country on earth. The world biggest producer & consumer of agricultural products. China, it was believed had the capacity and extra to feed the mouths of its 1.4 billion citizens. Enough fertile land to grow lovely fruit, veg and rear meat to support this giga – economy.
So where did it all go wrong? The explanation as it happens is a complex one. One of changing diets, population growth, greed and future security.
Join us in PART 2 where we explore how China is fighting to keep up the new food demands of its 1.4 billion people. And what this means for countries directly in the food firing line of this mega economy.