The US Department of Agriculture’s Global Agricultural Information Network published a translation in early February of China’s “12th Five-Year Plan on National Food Safety Standards.” The Plan was released by the Ministry of Health on January 30 and comments were accepted until February 28.

According to the document, China currently has 1,900 national food standards, more than 1,200 local food standards and over 3,100 industrial standards. The document states that, despite the development of such standards and China’s 2009’s Food Safety Law, problems remain. These problems are divided into four categories: duplicative and inconsistent food standards from different government ministries; lack of standards for key categories, including standards for certain detection methods and packaging materials; a need to update the existing standards’ scientific bases; and inadequate publication, interpretation and implementation of standards. The document also lists three shortcomings of the national standards: lack of basic research to support the standards; absence of a full-time technical organization dedicated to food safety standards; and inadequate funding and personnel for formulation and revision of the standards.

In line with these shortcomings, the document lays out four main objectives for the Plan: review and consolidation of standards, including those for agriculture quality, food hygiene and food quality; revision and creation of new national food standards, including improved scientific support; better administration of food standards; and greater publicity of the standards and improved implementation.