June 27, 2007	Wednesday	Jamadi-us-Sani 11, 1428

BEIJING: Chinese customs inspectors have seized contaminated shipments of fruit products imported from the United States and ordered more thorough checks of US food imports, state press said on Tuesday.

Shipments of orange pulp and dried apricots were confiscated after inspectors found that they contained excessive amounts of bacteria, mildew and sulphur dioxide, Xinhua news agency said.

The orange pulp supplied by the Modern Skill Co was seized in China’s eastern Shandong province, while the dried apricots from Mariani Packing Co Inc were confiscated in southern Guangdong province, it said. The quantities and value of the imports were not specified.

China’s General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine ordered local inspectors to step up their checks of food products imported from the United States, it said.

According to the report, the orange pulp was nevertheless processed “under the supervision of the administration,” while the dried apricots were destroyed.

The discovery of the contaminated US products comes as China has come under heightened scrutiny for allegedly exporting tainted and dangerous products to the United States, triggering concerns among consumers and regulators there. Reports of tainted pet foods, dangerous toys, fake drugs, toxin-coated monkfish and cosmetics, drug-laced frozen eel, illicit pesticide-laden mushrooms and other products from China have led to recalls and bans and potentially more stringent US import and food safety laws.—AFP