China's food watchdog issued an emergency circular on Wednesday
to ensure food safety in the face of severe winter weather that has
blocked transport and endangered supplies in much of central,
eastern and southern China.
The State Food and Drug Administration (SFDA) ordered all the
local food and drug bureaus to tighten inspections of food
production and sale facilities so as to prevent inferior or fake
food from entering the market.
The snow, the heaviest in decades in many places, has been
falling in China's east, central and southern regions since Jan.
10, causing building collapses, power blackouts, highway closures
and crop destruction.
The SFDA ordered all local bureaus to maintain food market order
and to prosecute law violations, noting supplies of some foods was
already tight.
The extreme weather in the past two weeks hit as Chinese
travelers began one of the world's biggest annual mass migrations
for the Chinese Lunar New Year, or the Spring Festival, the most
important festival for Chinese family gatherings.
The SFDA also ordered local bureaus to promptly report and
tackle emergencies and prevent mass incidents of food
poisoning.
(Xinhua News Agency January 30, 2008)