Alabama officials find banned drugs missed by FDA

One more reason, if one is needed, to avoid buying food products from "China, Vietnam and other Asian countries":

...Alabama officials have reported finding banned medicines missed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in seafood from China, Vietnam and other Asian countries.

``I'm sure that FDA would probably wish we'd go away,'' says Ron Sparks , commissioner of Alabama's Department of Agriculture and Industries, which conducts the seafood testing, in an interview. ``My wish is that they'd come to the table and work with us.''

[...]

The FDA says it does a good job of keeping unsafe products out of the food supply. In June, the agency began blocking imports of some farm-raised seafood from China  until importers provide test results showing shipments are free of banned drugs.

I guess it depends on what the meaning of the word "good" is.

Yet, of 94 samples of Chinese catfish checked by Alabama since March, the state reports that 41 tested positive for fluoroquinolones, antibiotics banned in the U.S. for seafood. Of 13 more samples of species similar to catfish, including one called basa, five tested positive for the antibiotic. The exporting countries included Vietnam, Thailand and Malaysia.

It might be time for the State to consider blocking all fish imports from these countries.  I'm sure we have much better uses for our money than spending it cleaning up after the FDA.  If they won't "come to the table and work with us" maybe they can throw a few bucks our way to cover our costs for doing their job.  Three other southeastern states have found the banned drugs as well:

Mississippi, Arkansas and Louisiana  also have found banned drugs in imported seafood, according to statements by regulators in those states. The tests, conducted after the products cleared U.S. ports and were sent on for sale in grocery stores or restaurants, show the FDA isn't adequately protecting consumers from tainted fish, food safety advocates said.

Ya think??

The Chinese government, concerned over the tainted fish, is working on an incentive program for their food and drug regulators.  It's a killer:

China has promised to improve the safety of seafood and other exports. The country executed its chief food and drug regulator last month, citing corruption.

It's encouraging to see the states step up to the plate.  I suspect it has something to do with protecting their catfish industries, although Ron Sparks in Alabama denied it, but  whatever the reason the inspections have kept a lot of potentially deadly fish off the shelves.

Comments

[Scott Allan]

Of course my daughter has the Fisher Price Dora the Explorer toys from China that may contain lead paint. Supposedly they are safe if you bought them prior to 5/1, but I threw them out anyways.

To be honest, I'm surprised it took this long to happen. We get what we deserve when we outsource for cheap labor. My personal pet peeve is outsourcing programming and customer service to countries like India. As Armand Hammer once said, "You pay peanuts, you get monkeys." I've never understood why companies sacrifice quality to save a few dollars. Ultimately you will lose loyalty.

[mad_cow]

It's impossible to keep up with recalls, safety warnings, etc. The federal government has a responsibility to make sure what's coming into this country is safe. Unfortunately it's too busy micro-(mis)managing everything else.

I just cringe when I have to call Dell, Bell South, etc. Some guy I can't understand answers and tells me he is name is "Sean" or "Paul". Yeah, right. I was pleasantly surprised the last time I had an Internet problem and called Bell South and an American (or she sounded like it) answered. I told her it was nice to talk to someone I could understand for a change. She laughed.

We're not only outsourcing customer service (and jobs) we're outsourcing our safety.

[Don]

"I just cringe when I have to call Dell, Bell South, etc. Some guy I can't understand answers....."

Amen, amen amen!!!

[Scott Allan]

Oh man, I complain about he same thing! When I talk to Dell and talk to "Steve" or "Betty" they read their cue cards, repeat everything you say, and then put you on hold for 5 minutes to figure out what it means. Then they try to get you to follow their problem solving script even if you already know what the problem is. What a waste of time. I bought a Mac partly because their customer service is in California.

Another thing I hate since I am a programmer is outsourcing programming to India. Companies here are blinded by the low cost and don't seem to realize the crap that is sent back takes 5 times as long to debug. If you don't have the program practically written for them with perfect specs, you will never get what you requested. Sometime in the mid 1990's customer service was no longer important to American companies. I think this is a HUGE mistake.

[linda]

People should also take note that the reason they use anti-biotics is because of crowded, unsanitary conditions!

[China Law Blog]

I see this as one more reason to avoid shipping product through Alabama. The overwhelming bulk of Chinese seafood is just fine. 83 percent of US seafood is imported and if you really think places like Cambodia, Laos, and Bangladesh are any better ....