China’s regulations look good on paper but the absence of an independent judiciary means the rules are sometimes applied inconsistently.

By Patricia Adams, Special to the Financial Post

In January, Canada’s Food Inspection Agency and China’s customs authority signed a memorandum of understanding to enhance co-operation on food safety and animal and plant health. Prime Minister Mark Carney framed it as part of a bilateral reset aiming for smoother trade. On paper, it establishes technical working groups, information-sharing and biennial meetings. In practice, it asks Canadian consumers and regulators to trust a food system with a well-documented history of repeated, sometimes lethal, failures.

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In Brief by Probe International

Despite the Chinese government’s assurances of stringent food safety laws, the specter of corruption looms large, with enforcement driven more by political expediency than genuine consumer protection. The privileged elite, insulated from the perils of the common food supply, have long relied on secret farms for uncontaminated provisions, while the masses are left to navigate a treacherous landscape of contaminated products and deceptive practices (including “cat mutton”).

Beneath the veneer of diplomatic optimism lies a chilling reality: a food system in China marred by a litany of scandals, from the infamous melamine crisis that claimed innocent lives to the recent horrors of lead-tainted meals for children. As Canada opens its doors wider to Chinese food imports, the new MOU, laden with reassurances, does little to mitigate the risks posed by opaque supply chains that could very well bring “gutter oil” and tainted ingredients to Canadian tables.