Edited by: Minister Counsellor (Food, Agriculture ......success. Many Chinese people prefer saving their money due to the high costs incurred in connection to illness, unemployment

Edited by: Marie Louise Flach de Neergaard Minister Counsellor (Food, Agriculture & Fisheries) Mette Sivebæk Knudsen Commercial Assistant (Food, Agriculture & Fisheries)

Food Team News - March 2012

Page | 1

With the diverse academic and commercial backgrounds, offices in 5 geographical locations, a valuable network of public

institutions and private companies, and a mix of Chinese and Danish consultants the Food, Agriculture and Fisheries team

has extensive experience with assisting Danish companies entering the Chinese market.

Liu Qiang

Commercial Officer

[email protected]

+86 (10) 8532 9920

Mobile: +86 138 1126 2958

Huifang Jiang (Lydia)

Commercial Officer

[email protected]

+86 21 6209 0500 + 202

Mobile: + 86 139 1659 3810

Shan He (Grace)

Commercial Officer

[email protected]

+86 (10) 8532 9915

Mobile: +86 138 1168 7696

Joakim Hunt Bjerregaard Andersen

Commercial Assistant

[email protected]

+86 (23) 63836008

Mobile: +86 150 8677 8103

Mette Sivebæk Knudsen

Commercial Assistant

[email protected]

+86 (10) 8532 9926

Mobile: +86 186 1134 7847

Marie Louise Flach De Neergaard

Minister Counsellor

Team leader of the Food Team

[email protected]

+86 (10) 8532 9987

Mobile: +86 139 1023 5271

Hans Halskov

Consul, Trade Commissioner

[email protected]

+86 (23) 6372 5280

Mobile: +86 135 946 365

Morten Kruse

Commercial Officer

[email protected]

(+852) 3170 9119

Mobile: (+852) 9401 7331

mailto:[email protected]


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In the annual opening speech to the National People’s Congress,

Premier Minister Wen Jiabao put the themes of welfare and

consumption on top of the Chinese government’s agenda for 2012.

True to tradition the Premier Minister described the past

year’s developments and the government’s targets for the

coming one in his opening speech to congress which was

held on March 5, 2012.

Highlighted merits from 2011 included a GDP growth

rate of 9.2 %, export and import growth rates of 20.3%

and 24.9% respectively, as well as 12.21 million newly

created jobs in urban areas. In general Wen Jiabao

stressed how the topic of welfare was prioritized and

promoted in 2011, and how that has resulted in average

disposable income growing with 8.4% and 11.4% in urban

and rural areas respectively.

As a surprise element the speech also included a

downscaling of expectations for GDP growth in 2012,

which is now targeted at 7.5%. The past eight years the

official government target has been set at 8%. This does

not merely indicate how China is also subject to global,

economic turbulence but it also marks a change in the

government’s direction in pursuit of economic growth.

During the past three decades China has followed a

growth trajectory that has emphasized high production

and export levels rather than the development of

consumption and the domestic social landscape. This

approach has in later years turned out to put a strain on

long-term economic development in China. Moreover,

this growth strategy has proven to be fragile in the

shorter term, especially as seen in the light of the financial

slowdown which has been felt across the globe in later

years.

Balancing the economy, improving government

management and trying to ensure social stability are

therefore topics that will be highly prioritized in coming

years as China seeks to rebuild the model which its

explosive growth was initially built on. The arguing

behind the moderate target was also a reflection of the

government’s wish to create economic growth that is

sustainable and effective.

“Expanding domestic demand, particularly consumer

demand, which is essential to ensuring China's long-term,

steady and robust economic development, is the focus of

our economic work this year," Premier Minster Wen

Jiabao said.

This is a statement that has been repeated multiple times

by the Chinese government – so far without any marked

success. Many Chinese people prefer saving their money

due to the high costs incurred in connection to illness,

unemployment and children’s education due to the

country’s lacking social welfare system.

Wen Jiabao however promised to alter the current income

distribution and increase incomes of those in the lower

and middle income groups, which should help stimulate

consumption. In this regard investments in areas such as

education, health, employment, social security and

housing projects for low-income groups are tools that the

government will include and which are supposed to create

a sustainable growth path for China in the future.


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GMO Grain Law

The Legislative Affairs office of the State Council, or

China's cabinet, released a draft of a new grain law to

solicit public opinions on February 21, 2012. The draft,

jointly prepared by the National Development and

Reform Commission and the State Administration of

Grain, aims to ensure grain security by stabilizing grain

output and intensifying control and supervision of the

market.

The draft includes stipulations concerning the market

deployment of grain resources and the safeguarding of

grain production, circulation and quality. According to the

draft, the production, circulation and sale of edible

vegetable oil will also be subject to the bill, as it is a daily

necessity for most people.

The draft requires that all activities related to GM seeds,

including scientific research, field trials, production, sales,

imports and exports, be carried out in accordance with

the country's regulations. It is forbidden to use GM

technology to develop principle grain cultivars without

approval in advance, according to the draft. It is already

forbidden to use GM technology without any advance

approval. The difference lies in this is a law, as it was

previously only a regulation. The move of putting GM

into a law is seen as a major effort by the central

government to deal with safety concerns of GM food.

Organic food

New rules on organic product certification

implementation issued by CNCA and organic product

standards issued by AQSIQ came into force on March 1,

2012. The new rule reflects how Chinese authority is

attaching greater importance to the organic production

and market as well as administration due to increased

attention and demand of domestic customers.

As previously, the new rule covers imports as well as

domestic production and is even stricter than the previous

rule on inspection requirements, label control, etc. The

implementation of the new rules has already implied more

obstacles to foreign organic companies which are

exporting organic food to China. For instance the new

rule states, that all production units should be inspected,

which will impact foreign producers to a larger extent

than before. Moreover, it has previously been possible for

foreign, organic products, which have not obtained

Chinese certification, to keep their foreign organic

certification label in spite of being sold as conventional

products in China. This practice will no longer be possible

as indicating any words related to organic on a label

without Chinese organic certification will not be in

accordance with the new standard. A category list of

organic products has also been published. Products not

included on the list will not be able to be certified as

organic in China.

Foreign food manufacturers

A series of provisions and rules with respect to imported

food including Provisions on the Administration of the

Registration of Foreign Manufacturers of Imported Foods and

Administrative Measures on Import and Export Food Safety are

coming into force in March 2012. Both of the regulations

were issued by The General Administration of Quality

Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine of People’s

Republic of China (AQSIQ) which is a management

authority of imported food aiming to strengthen the

supervision and administration of import food safety.

Provisions on the Administration of the Registration of Foreign

Manufacturers of Imported Foods apply to the registration as

well as the supervision and administration of foreign

production, processing and storing enterprises exporting

food to China. The Certification and Accreditation

Administration of People’s Republic of China (CNCA)

organises and implements the registration of foreign

manufacturers of imported food as well as their

supervision and administration.

With the implementation of this piece of legislation

foreign manufacturers of food listed in the “Catalogue”

will be required to register with the Chinese authorities if

they wish to export to China. According to information

from AQSIQ the idea of the new legislation is not to

further complicate the procedure but to improve

protection of Chinese consumers and risk management.

Their intention with the new legislation is for it to be

applied to meat and meat products which basically is the

same scheme as the one in place today. Whether the

legislation is to be applied to further areas depends on risk

and cannot be determined at this stage. However seafood

and dairy were among other areas being considered.

Administrative Measures on Import and Export Food Safety

apply to inspection, quarantine, supervision and

management of import and export food. AQSIQ will

assess food safety management systems in countries or

regions that export food to China, and also conduct

retrospective reviews as required by import food safety

supervision and management. It is a general regulation on

imported and exported food safety which means that

exclusive rules on imported and exported meat products,

dairy products, and aquatic product, etc. exist.


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The Chinese market for organic food is in its fledgling start-up phase

and can still be described as a niche market. Food safety remains a

high priority for Chinese consumers, just like the proportion of

affluent Chinese middle class is growing rapidly. These are factors

that will contribute to build a solid platform for the sales of imported

organic food in China in the future.

In 2020 China will be the World's fourth largest consumer

of organic food – that is the estimate put forward by the

Chinese Ministry of Agriculture. And the MoA is not

alone in its predictions on which direction the Chinese

consumption of organic food will go. The U.S.

Department of Agriculture supports this trend and

estimates that the market could reach a size of 49 billion

DKK already in 2015, as well as Danish Federation of

Industries predicting that the organic market has potential

to grow by up to 50% annually in the coming years.

According to official Chinese sources, imports of organic

products added up to a value of 114 million in 2009. In

the above perspective, this is a moderate amount, which is

however also misleading, seeing that imported organic

products often do not meet China’s domestic certification

standards. Still many imported, organic food products are

sold on the Chinese market, just not as organic even if

they wear foreign organic certification labels. In this light,

the unofficial consumption of organic products is

expected to be substantially higher than what official

figures may say.

Currently only 0.08% of the food consumed in China is

estimated to be of organic origin, and in this perspective,

it is obvious that the market is still highly immature.

Despite heavy Chinese bureaucracy, the market potential,

however, remains enormous. Organic products are often

sold at prices that are up to five times higher than

conventional food products’ and are mainly sold in large

cities, where consumers are better informed about organic

products and their qualities.

The middle class – and demand – is growing

The rapidly growing Chinese middle class, of which the

majority is also residing in urban areas, will prospectively

be one of the main drivers of the projected development

in organic food demand. It is estimated that the Chinese

middle class, now consisting of nearly 120 million, will

expand to 300 million by 2020, and is mainly made up of

the population with higher education and income levels

which are also correspondingly above average. These

consumers are however also prepared to pay the price

premium as organic products are not only considered to

be status symbols, but are also perceived as being

healthier, safer and of higher quality than their

conventionally grown counterparts. In particular, food

safety is an important aspect to Chinese consumers, as

China is frequently hit by food scandals.

Challenges and implications

One of the major challenges in relation to realizing the

full Chinese market potential is to spread public

awareness of the qualities of organic food among

consumers. Moreover, certification procedures set

considerable requirements for exporters. An export

strategy should therefore not only focus on commercial

aspects but equally prioritize authority contact.

Currently the majority of Danish organic exports go to

nearby European markets, but in a long-term, strategic

perspective, China holds potential that is not to be

mistaken.


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New rules on exports of beef and beef products to Hong Kong have

come into force as of October 2011.

Following the recognition of Denmark as a country with a

negligible risk for BSE, during the 79th OIE General

Session in Paris in May 2011, which was adopted by the

resolution no. 17 on “Recognition of the Bovine

Spongiform Encephalopathy Risk Status of Members”,

the Hong Kong government has adopted a new and

revised Certificates of Origin and Health issued by the

Danish Veterinary and Food Administration.

The change which came into effect in October 2011

reflects the fact that according to the EU legislation,

testing age for cattle had been changed on July 1, 2011

from 48 months to 72 months which was not taken into

consideration in the previous approved Certificate of

Origin and Health for exports to Hong Kong.

The new and revised certificate is already adopted by the

Danish Veterinary and Food Administration and is only

applicable for beef and beef products from animals of

Danish origin.

In spite of the Consumer Price Index being at the lowest level since

July 2010, food inflation continues to be a major concern in China’s

macroeconomic environment. In February 2012 the CPI was up

3.2%, fuelled by food inflation of 6.2%.

Food inflation by category, February 2011 and 2012

Source: National Bureau of Statistics of China

In February 2012 food prices slowed to 6.2% after a slight

increase in January due to Chinese New Year. Food prices

however remain the main driver of inflation in China,

contributing almost two thirds of CPI of 3.2%. CPI was

in February at its lowest level since July 2010, reflecting

the sluggishness of China’s economy, as weak global

demand is weighing on exports.

Among food categories, the main drivers of overall food

inflation continue to be meat products and eggs weighing

in a 12.9% and 10.6% respectively. This development is to

a large extent driven by higher feed prices as demand for

corn is increasing globally, adding to the final sales price.

Other more general drivers of food inflation include

increased domestic demand from the growing middle

class, rises in input prices such as energy and inefficiencies

in rural distribution systems, disrupting the domestic

movement of food products and creating bottlenecks in

the overall economy.

China’s inflation target was recently set at 4% by Premier

Minister Wen Jiabao.

Year 2011 saw Danish exports of food and agricultural products to

China incl. Hong Kong reach a value of 11 billion DKK. This is

equivalent of an increase of nearly 20% compared to 2010.

Exports of Danish food and agricultural products

accounted for more than 45% of total Danish exports of

goods to China and Hong Kong in 2011, underscoring

the Danish sector’s strength in an export perspective. The

sector’s exports increased by almost 2 billion DKK from

the previous year and thereby reached a value of 11 billion

DKK in 2011.

Generally, the Danish food and agricultural sector has

experienced large growth in terms of export to the

Chinese market. From 2007 to 2011 total exports from

the sector has increased by 152% which is a development

that has largely been fuelled by increased demands for fur

and meat products.

In turn the single most important export product for the

Danish food industry continues to be raw skin, the

majority being mink fur. In 2011 the category

independently accounted for 7.5 billion DKK up from 6.5

billion DKK in 2010. This is the equivalent of a 15%

increase and the category is now responsible for almost a

third of total Danish goods exports to China incl. Hong

Kong.

Pork meat is the second most important product exported

to China and Hong Kong for the Danish food sector. The

category experienced immense growth in 2011 as exports

6.2%

1.7%

5.4%

12.9%

6.5% 6.1%

7.5%

10.6%

0%

5%

10%

15%


Page | 6

grew to a value of 1.8 billion DKK in 2011 being the

equivalent of a 63% increase from 2010 where exports

reached 1.1 billion DKK.

Aquatic products continue to be the sector’s third largest

export category in spite of a flat development from 2010

to 2011. The category reached an export value of nearly

0.8 billion DKK.

Danish agricultural and food exports to China including Hong Kong

Source: Statistics Denmark

Danish exports to China including Hong Kong, 2011

Source: Statistics Denmark

-

2

4

6

8

10

12

2007 2008 2009 2010 2011

Billions

Meat and meat products

7.5%

Dairy products and eggs 0.8%

Aquatic products 3.2%

Fur and hides 31.0%

Medicine and pharmaceutical

products 10.1%

Metal products 1.1%

Power-generating machinery and machine parts

4.5%

Industrial machinery and machine parts

9.4%

Electrical machinery and parts

3.9% Scientific and controlling instruments

4.1%

Other 24.4%


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Together with the Danish Agriculture and Food Council, Minister of Trade and Investment, Pia Olsen Dyhr, hosted a reception for Danish food in Beijing on February 22, 2012 to mark the strong cooperation between the two countries, and to promote Danish products. A meeting with Chen Deming, Minister of Commerce was also planned in order to talk further about cooperation between the two countries. The Danish agriculture and food sector has a global reputation for high quality and food safety, and the industry plays a key role in Danish exports. China has increased its import from the Danish agriculture and food sector from 9.3 billion to 11 billion DKK from 2010 to 2011 due to China’s economic prosperity and demands for high food quality. “In China agricultural products from Denmark possess the reputation of being products of high quality and safety. At the same time, the Danish agriculture and food sector represents an innovative, holistic approach throughout the entire value chain and can contribute with many of the solutions that the Chinese market demands,” the Danish Minister said. Despite China's status as the World's largest food producer and the country's ambition of high levels of self-sufficiency, domestic production is facing great challenges to meet the growing demands. In this perspective, the Danish agriculture and food industry has a large export potential across the Chinese food producing value chain. Moreover, the changed demand patterns poses a large potential for increased Danish exports of high quality food, including high-value products such as processed and organic foods. The Danish Minister also pointed to the importance of a continuous close cooperation between Denmark and China: “The foundation for continued growth must be found in a persistently close and broad cooperation between authorities and companies. I am therefore looking forward to promoting innovative Danish foods and technologies in China.”

At the invitation of Danish Veterinary and Food Administration and Danish Agriculture and Food Council, a Chinese delegation from the AQSIQ and CNCA paid a 4-day visit to Denmark in order to learn more about the practices in the Danish food sector The Chinese delegation was made up of Deputy Director of Import and Export Food Safety Bureau Mr. Bi Kexin, official Mr. Wang Ning from AQSIQ and official Ms. Zheng Linying from CNCA attended the Meat Inspection Conference held in Copenhagen on February 2-3, 2012. Moreover, visits were paid to several establishments of pork and poultry in the following days. The Chinese delegation participated in meetings and workshops and showed great interest in the speeches and discussions on the future meat inspection. “It is a great opportunity for us to be here to attend this kind of scientific conference and I gained great insights about the meat inspection system in Demark which will also have an effect on Chinese meat inspection” Mr. Bi said. In the following days after the conference, the delegation visited several establishments covering pork slaughter houses, pork processing factories and a poultry plant throughout Jutland. The officials listened to the presentations of each establishment and put forward a lot of questions. Also they were accompanied around the production lines. Generally the Chinese delegation was very impressed by the whole system of meat production and management during this visit trip. It is much helpful for Danish meat export to China in the future on the basis of Chinese competent authorities’ understanding of the industry.


Page | 8

Greenland’s Minister for Fisheries, Hunting and Agriculture, Ms. Ane Hansen visited China in January 2012. She was in Beijing with a delegation to meet Chinese politicians and officials to promote import and sale of Greenlandic fisheries and sustainable products in China as well as to participate in Beijing Fur Fair 2012. January 11, the Danish embassy in Beijing received a visit from Greenland headed by Minister for Fisheries, Hunting and Agriculture, Ms Ane Hansen aiming at promoting import and sale of Greenlandic fisheries, sealskins and sustainable products in China. “Natural resources must be used in a sustainable way and on a scientific basis which ensures a healthy eco-system. In Greenland the fishery and hunting sector are administered in that way. During our meeting today at the Ministry of Agriculture I was also assured, that sustainability is high on the Chinese agenda when it comes to fishing and hunting and that trade with sealskin may be supported when carried out in accordance to Chinese rules,” says Ms. Ane Hansen, Greenland’s Minister for Fisheries, Hunting and Agriculture. The delegation also participated in Beijing Fur Fair 2012, and visited the leather and fur market in Haining. Thereafter the delegation went to Shanghai and among others met with the North Atlantic Fur Group (NAFG).

Food Expo is Scandinavia’s most important exhibition for professionals of the food industry and was this year held on March 18-20 in Herning, Denmark. The Trade Council attended the fair with a large delegation of commercial counsellors from around the globe. The Trade Council China attended the Food Expo 2012 which takes place every other year in MCH Messecenter Herning and is organized by MCH in collaboration with a committee consisting of 13 representatives from the leading trade associations within Foodservice & Catering, Hotel & Restaurant as well as Food Retail Trade. To the great satisfaction of the organizers 21,783 visited the fair and experienced the 368 exhibitor’s products and services. Once again the Food Expo also hosted a variety of trade competition with participation from chefs, waiters, butchers and fish retailers just to mention a few. In total 12 competitions including 7 Danish championships were held during the fairs opening 18th – 20th of March 2012. The Trade Council Chinas participation was part of a larger delegation of commercial counsellors from several of The Trade Councils missions such as Germany, Poland, Spain, Russia but also far markets such as Japan and the United States. During the visit The Trade Council China’s representative had the opportunity to acquire valuable market feedback about the current trends, topics and fast growing segments within the Danish food market. Such opportunity is especially valuable since it provides the members of The Trade Council with new and refreshes old knowledge about the trends in the Danish market which can be directly transferred to better identifying Danish potentials on the Chinese markets.


Page | 9

The fair also provided a valuable opportunity to network with Danish companies currently exporting or contemplating about initiating export to China. The event was a good occasion to meet and talk with Danish food producers face-to-face and provide them with valuable insight on China and the opportunities that exist for each individual company. Should your company be interested in receiving a visit from one of our representatives during the year to discuss the opportunities in China then please feel free to contact a relevant member from The Trade Council Chinas Food, Agriculture and Fisheries team. The relevant contact information is provided in the beginning of the newsletter.

A strengthening of cooperation in regards to high quality food between Denmark and China poses large potential for exporters of Danish food products in the future. Minister of Trade and Investment, Pia Olsen Dyhr, headed a promotion of Danish food products on February 22, and at this occasion the Danish Agriculture and Food Council signed an MoU with China Green Food Development Center with the objective of strengthening cooperation between the two countries. CGFDC is in charge of the Chinese Green Food scheme, which is a special program emphasizing quality and tracibility for healthy, safe and sustainable food products. The Danish Agriculture and Food Council has thus become the first foreign organization to initiate a close formal collaboration with the China Green Food Development Center. “In China, there is a huge market for high quality food products, and Danish food companies have an edge in the market to be exploited. The Green Food label is the single most important and recognized labeling of healthy and safe food. The formal cooperation, which now begins with the China Green Food Development Center, provides new market opportunities. The potential in China is enormous, and now another step has been taken towards becoming part of the attractive, green, high-end market, which also entails a significant price premium”, says director of Trade and Marketing, Jan Laustsen, from the Danish Food & Agriculture Council. The protocol entails intensified cooperation with special emphasis on food security, increased trade, and development of sustainable food and production. This also includes assistance to Danish food companies that want to obtain the Green Food label on their products, and help in relation to marketing of Danish food products in China.


Page | 10

Hosted by the EU-China Trade Project a workshop on traceability of agricultural products was held on March 28-29 in Beijing. Among the attendants were both European and Chinese officials discussing different international standards of traceability and how to assess this important topic in the future. Traceability is becoming an increasingly important topic in the Chinese food sector, as consumer protection and food safety are topics which are finding their way to the media on a regular basis. In the EU food safety is considered a cornerstone of the food law and in this perspective current Chinese standards remain less organized. The EU-China workshop thus provided a platform for key figures from the Chinese and European food sectors to exchange experiences and discuss the future of traceability systems. Among the topics there were introductions to current Chinese initiatives. Traceability is part of China’s 12th 5-year plan and is manifested as the objective of implementing traceability systems for meat and vegetables in cities with more than 1 million citizens by 2015. The initiative has been launched by China’s Ministry of Commerce and is currently running trials in 10 cities throughout the country. As it was pointed to during the seminar, China is however still facing challenges in regards to technology, circulation and distribution issues. European models, as seen in Germany, Ireland and Poland were also discussed at the seminar. From Denmark Per Rathmann Hansen from the Danish Veterinary and Food Administration presented the Danish standards of traceability in animal supply chains. The Danish model attracted much attention and interest from the Chinese audience, where the issues of implementation, funding, government enforcement and new technologies were all touched upon. Generally, the seminar participants showed large interest in electronic traceability technologies ranging from electronic ear tags to quick response codes, which is a tool that allows the consumer to trace the origin of their purchased product via mobile phone.


Page | 11

What When Where

China International Organic Food & Green Food Exposition Apr 7-9 Beijing

China International Health Edible Oil & Olive Oil Expo Apr 7-9 Beijing

China International Ice Cream Exhibition Apr 7-9 Beijing

China International High-end Beverages Expo Apr 9-11 Shanghai

Coffee & Tea China Apr 9-12 Shanghai

Hortiflorexpo China Apr 11-14 Beijing

China Ketchup Industry Exposition Apr 13-15 Shanghai

International High-end Bottled Water Exhibition Apr 13-15 Shanghai

Wine China 2012 Apr 23-25 Beijing

International Olive Oil & Edible Oil Exhibition Apr 23-25 Beijing

International Wine & Spirits Exhibition May 3-5 Shanghai

SIAL China May 9-11 Shanghai

China International Foodstuff Exposition May 10-12 Guangzhou

China Food Machinery & Packaging Exhibition May 10-12 Guangzhou

Winexpo - China International Wine & Spirits Exhibition May 10-12 Guangzhou

Bakery China May 10-12 Shanghai

China Animal Husbandry Exhibition: Held by China Animal Agriculture Association (CAAA), CAHE takes place every year in May in China. CAHE is a top show specialized in livestock production (pig, poultry, beef cattle, sheep, grass, machinery, animal health)

May 18-20 Nanjing

China Tea Expo May 18-21 Shanghai

Cold Chain Logistics China May 21-23 Guangzhou

Interwine China May 25-27 Guangzhou

BioFach China:

The most prestigious, influential trade fair specializing in the field of organic products showing in China.

May 26-28 Shanghai

Vinexpo Asia-Pacific May 29-31 Hong Kong

TopWine Jun 4-6 Beijing

Gourmet World Shanghai Jun 12-14 Shanghai

International Coffee Industry Exhibition Jun 14-16 Beijing

World Dairy Expo & Summit Jun 16-18 Henan

China Potato Expo Jun 24-26 Hohhot

Health Ingredients China Jun 26-28 Shanghai

Food Ingredients Asia-China Jun 26-28 Shanghai

Guangzhou International Coffee Equipment and Supplies Fair Jun 28-30 Guangzhou

DairyTek China Jul 18-20 Shanghai

International Fishing and Outdoor Trade Fair Jul 20-22 Dalian

Pet Accessory & Aqua Expo Jul 27-29 Hong Kong

International Agriculture Fair Aug 12-14 Xinjiang

Hong Kong International Tea Fair Aug 16-20 Hong Kong


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HKTDC Food Expo Aug 16-20 Hong Kong

Natural Products Expo Asia Aug 23-25 Hong Kong

Vitafoods Asia: The most focussed event in the world devoted to nutraceuticals, functional food and drink ingredients, raw materials and nutricosmetics.

Sep 5-7 Hong Kong

Asia Fruit Logistica Sep 5-7 Hong Kong

Frozen Food Asia 2012 Sep 11-13 Hong Kong

Restaurant & Bar Hong Kong 2012 Sep 11-13 Hong Kong

Asian Seafood Exposition Sep 11-13 Hong Kong

Sweet and Snacks China Sep 20-22 Shanghai

VIV China – From Feed to Meat Sep 23-25 Beijing

China Dairy Fair 2012 & Health Nutrients Expo Oct 12-14 Beijing

China Agricultural Trade Fair Oct 18-21 Beijing

China Xiamen International Tea Fair Oct 19-22 Xiamen

China Xiamen International Coffee Fair Oct 19-22 Xiamen

FruVeg Expo Nov 5-7 Shanghai

China Fisheries & Seafood Expo: Now entering its 17th year, China Fisheries & Seafood Expo is a highly successful, established international exposition. Thousands of pre-qualified buyers and decision makers visit the show ready to do business.

Nov 6-8 Liaoning

Hong Kong International Wine & Spirits Fair Nov 8-10 Hong Kong

Food and Hotel China: China’s global food, wine and hospitality exhibition and a very important business event for the retail and hospitality sector. FHC specializes in bringing international companies to China and connecting them with importers and professionals serving the China market.

Nov 15-17 Shanghai

AgriPro Asia Expo Dec 5-7 Hong Kong

Shanghai International Fisheries & Seafood Exposition Dec 7-9 Shanghai

China Animal Husbandry Exhibition May 2013 Beijing

BioFach China May 2013 Shanghai


Page | 13

The Trade Council co-finances joint export promotion campaigns for groups of minimum five Danish companies. The aim is to broaden the knowledge of the participating companies about market and business conditions and creating contacts to business and collaboration partners abroad. Who can apply?

Groups of minimum five Danish companies, businesses and industrial organizations, as well as enterprises providing export consultancy services, can apply for funds co-financing a joint export promotion campaign.

What does a joint export promotion campaign include? The co-financed funds may be granted in the relation to the following three project modules:

Preparation module Module elements may include:

Retrieval of market information

Plan the content of a joint export promotion campaign

Generate interest for the campaign among Danish companies Implementation module Module elements may include:

Joint activity, e.g. a seminar, an exhibition or similar event in the target market

Contact meetings with potential business partners and company visits

Joint promotional material

New and innovative export promotion activities How much will the Trade Council co-finance?

The Trade Council can co-finance up to 50 percent of the approved project cost, though for preparation activities a

maximum of DKK 200,000 and for delegation visits a maximum of DKK 350,000 can be co-financed.

When is the application deadline?

Deadline Period of export promotion

May 1, 2012 August 2012 – July 2013

August 1, 2012 November 2012 – Oktober 2013

November 1, 2012 February 2012 – January 2014


Page | 14

Selected cuts of Chinese News, Dec. – Mar. 2012

Control and Retribution

The Pig Site: China - Food Safety Check Ahead of Spring Festival

China will make "all-out efforts" to step up safety overhauls of food necessities in the production and logistics chains to prevent mishaps during the

upcoming Spring Festival shopping season. Authorities of agriculture, quality inspection, commerce and public security will enhance joint patrols and secret

inspections of the food market. Rice, cooking oil, meat, egg, dairy products and frozen food will be put on the target list, the State Council Food Safety

Commission said in a circular on Thursday. Efforts will be made to prevent any fake farm produce or harmful pesticide residue affecting the health of

consumers, the circular said.

Several food safety scandals rattled the nation in 2011, including meat processors adding cancer-causing clenbuterol to pig feed to produce lean meat and

restaurants serving food cooked with recycled oil known as "gutter oil."

(The Pig Site, 13/01/2012)

Global Times: Food recall mechanism to be boosted

China will beef up efforts to improve its food tracking and recall system and quality standards, according to food safety watchdogs Thursday. Authorities will

put in place a mechanism for companies to voluntarily recall or authorities to force the recall of food, according to a document released jointly by the

National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) and the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT). Wang Shiping, a professor of

food safety at the China Agricultural University, told the Global Times Friday that such food safety management regulations at the national level are urgently

needed. "Such regulations could prevent more unqualified food from entering the market, as it offers a legal basis nationwide for food safety watchdogs to

follow during the inspection process," Wang said.

The pilot move will mainly be implemented in the dairy, meat and alcohol industries, according to the document. Food safety standards, including product

quality and inspection standards, especially for meat, drinks, milk products and others, are to be regulated or amended during the 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-

15), said the document. Wang said that all these standards will be in vain if food companies do not raise their food safety awareness during production and

distribution or actively recall tainted food. Two batches of milk from Chinese dairy giant Mengniu Dairy Group were found to contain excessive levels of

toxins in December last year. (Global Times, 14/01/2012)

Global Times: Cooking oil safety scare in Guangdong Province

The food safety regulator in Guangdong Province said yesterday it had uncovered carcinogenic mildew-tainted cooking oil in the latest overhaul on food

safety.

The carcinogenic mildew, called aflatoxin in scientific terminology, has triggered wide public concern over the safety of dairy products after being found in

milk products from dairy giant Mengniu Dairy Group late last year. The Guangdong Provincial Administration of Quality and Technology Supervision said

that it found excessive amounts of aflatoxin in cooking oil products, mostly peanut cooking oil, made by 20 small companies. Most of the cooking oil

products were sold in bulk to nearby residents, the administration said, blaming lax screening over production materials for the food safety scare.The agency

also said it revoked the production licenses of the guilty oil makers and ordered them to recall the cancer-causing, mildew-tainted products.

The mildew caught the nation's attention after it was found in high doses in dairy products from Mengniu late last year. An initial investigation showed that

the contamination was caused by mildewed feed given to cows in the dairy's plant in Sichuan Province.

(Global Times, 19/01/2012)

Global Times: New food scandal mars dumpling company’s credibility

Synear, one of the most well-known frozen dumpling brand names, is caught in a food safety scandal after two customers posted pictures online of

dumplings containing a band-aid and foam respectively during Lantern Festival.

One of the customers, surnamed Jin, posted the photos of the dumplings containing foam as well as her supermarket receipt on her Weibo microblog on

Monday. "I can't believe such a big enterprise would ignore food safety like this," Jin told the Global Times. She said that Synear contacted her to discuss the

issue yesterday morning. "They requested to see the dumpling with foam, but didn't tell us how to resolve the problem yet," said Jin.

The incident was not isolated. Another woman, Li Xiaoxia, from Ji'nan, Shandong Province, claimed that she found a band-aid in a Synear sweet dumpling

her parents bought from a local supermarket to celebrate Lantern Festival. Li posted her photos of the dumpling containing a band-aid together with the

receipt from the supermarket, on her Weibo microblog as well, which circulated quickly and was reposted over 12,000 times. She posted online that Synear

had contacted her father to get the sample for testing.


Page | 15

The Ji'nan Administration for Industry and Commerce responded that they have sent staff to investigate the issue. "If what the customer says proves to be

true, we will take measures to punish the enterprise," said the director of the administration's food department, surnamed Jiang. "Once we get the

investigation results, we will publicize them as soon as possible," he told the Global Times.

Synear Food Holdings based in Zhengzhou, Henan Province, was reluctant to comment on the case. "Our staff has been sent to Ji'nan for the investigation.

We will answer our consumers fairly," a media officer from the Synear, surnamed Zhu, told the Global Times yesterday. Zhu denied that they had received

any complaints about foam contained in dumplings. A scandal erupted last year when Synear dumplings were found to be tainted with bacteria.


Xinhua: Chinese vice premier urges harsh punishments for food safety violations

Vice Premier Li Keqiang on Wednesday called for strict and harsh punishments against food safety violations and urged strengthened supervision to ensure

food safety. Li, also head of the food safety commission under the State Council, or China's cabinet, told participants at a plenary meeting of the commission

that authorities should take a pro-active approach to deter violations. Prominent problems that threaten food safety have not been fundamentally rooted up,

and China still faces a grave situation in ensuring its food safety, he said at the meeting.

China will continue its heavy-handed measures against criminal offenses in food scandals and seek to establish a long-term mechanism to check food safety

in 2012, Li said at the meeting, during which an agenda for the priorities of China's annual food safety work was reviewed. Incentives and regulations will be

established to improve enterprises' management over food products, and the public will be invited to supervise them, according to the meeting. Government

departments' roles in monitoring food safety will be comprehensively strengthened in 2012, according to the meeting.

(Xinhua, 08/02/2012)

Xinhua: China punishes food safety criminals in 2011

Chinese authorities severely punished criminals violating food safety laws in 2011, according to new figures. Sources with the State Council's Food Safety

Committee said on Thursday that a total of 286 people in more than 5,200 food safety cases last year were handed sentences, including life imprisonment and

suspended death penalties. Law enforcement authorities closed more than 5,000 enterprises involved in crimes that jeopardized food safety, and also gave

administrative punishments to government officials for misconduct relating to the cases.

Health Minister Chen Zhu admitted during an exclusive interview with Xinhua on Wednesday that China's food safety standards are in urgent need of

improvement amid a spate of food safety scandals. Food safety has become one of the biggest issues of concern for Chinese people since various scandals,

such as tainted infant formula and cooking oil collected from sewers, were exposed by the media. Chen said the total number of national food standards,

local standards and food-producing industrial standards has topped 5,000. Among them, many overlap or contradict each other, he added, pointing to the

motivation behind the Ministry of Health's announcement last month that it will overhaul and streamline the current food standards list. Chen noted the

deficiency of some vital assessment measures, such as the lack of processes to ensure the standard of food packaging. According to Chen, some current food

standards have become outdated, calling for further efforts to implement new standards.

The Ministry of Health issued a draft on revised food standards last month to solicit public opinion up to the end of February. The minister said the lag of

research on national food standards and the country's fledgling risk evaluation system hindered the mapping of national food standards. Chen also attributed

the falling-behind to the shortage of professional technical management organs. The minister emphasized the importance of transparency in the forming of

new standards, encouraging civilians, lawyers and experts to participate in the process.

The ministry will report the new food safety standards to the World Health Organization, Chen added.Vice Premier Li Keqiang on Wednesday called for

strict and harsh punishments in cases of food safety violation. Speaking at a plenary meeting of the food safety commission under the State Council, or

China's cabinet, he urged strengthened supervision of the food industry.

(Xinhua, 09/02/2012)

Food safety

People Daily: Food safety among Beijingers' top concerns

Food safety ranked among the top 10 topics capital residents are concerned about and one of the topics most discussed by local political advisers, an online

poll found.

According to a poll on the official website of the ongoing plenary meeting of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) Beijing

Committee, food safety ranked seventh among the 15 hot topic that netizens chose. Political advisers urged the municipal government to increase rewards

for people who report food safety violation, and the recommended other measures to encourage the public to help prevent tainted food from ever reaching

people's dining tables. "The government should rely on customers to discover and report any food safety breaches, which cost less than a surprise inspection

from the food safety watchdog," said Li Rong, a delegate to CPPCC Beijing Committee and expert from the Office for Public Health Management under the

Chinese Center For Disease Control and Prevention.

Given the prevalence of small-scale farming and food producers in China, the government's current monitoring of food safety is too limited, she explained.

Li cited the official statistics estimating China is home to more than 200 million farmers that produce raw agricultural products. Moreover, roughly 90

percent of the 400,000 food-processing companies in China are small or medium-sized. It is essential to encourage public supervision of food producers and

establish a reward system, Li said.


Page | 16

Li Lite, a professor specialized in nutrition and food science at China Agricultural University, stressed in his proposal that the food safety problem is not

unique to Chinese cities. It is a problem all nations deal with, Li Lite said. The problem is not worse compared with the past, but it has become more

pressing lately because the public has greater awareness of health and food-borne illness thanks to economic growth and improvements to overall quality of

life, Li Lite said.

He suggested that the government should improve food safety education to teach the public to protect themselves. Beijing should speed up the

establishment of a food-tracking mechanism to ensure the food supply chain can be monitored, said Gu Jiuru, another delegate, who is also the executive

chef from Beijing's Quanjude, a chain of restaurants famous for roast duck. "All ducks that our restaurants sell have an ID," Gu said, adding that his

company sells about 9 million ducks annually. "People eat for their health, so even if our duck prices are relatively higher as a result of our management cost,

many customers are willing to pay to eat in our restaurants," he said.

(People Daily, 13/01/2012)

Organic

China Daily: Demand for organic food sprouts up at Spring Festival

Organic food products have become popular New Year gifts as the Chinese are paying more attention to health and food safety.

On Friday in a Wumart supermarket in Beijing's Chaoyang district, Han Yuying, a 53-year-old worker at a nursing home, was trying to select a box full of

eggs that, according to the label, were laid mostly by chickens that had dined on natural feed containing no additives. "I want to send some eggs to my sisters

as a Spring Festival gift," Han said. "These boxed eggs are indicative of quality." The 60-egged box Han bought cost 55.8 yuan ($8.80). That's a higher price

than is found at farmers markets, where an egg can often be had for 0.7 yuan.

In a booth at an Ito Yokado supermarket also in the Chaoyang district, a box containing 4 kilograms of organic pork was going for 1,288 yuan. A salesman

said the box was put on sale for the Spring Festival and that it has proved popular among customers. "A man just ordered three boxes," he said.

Zhang Qiang, manager of Lianshan Black Pigs Farm in Wulian county, Shandong province, which has more than 500 pigs raised on natural foods, said the

demand for organic pork rapidly increases around the time of Spring Festival. That recurring trend has caused the company's supply of products to run short

this year. "Organic pork has been chosen as a Spring Festival gift for many large companies, State-owned institutes and some government organizations,"

Zhang said. "Most of the pork is sold to big cities such as Qingdao and Jinan (both in Shandong)." Ordinary pork goes for about 25 yuan a kg, while the

organic pork at his farm sells for closer to 100 yuan a kg, Zhang said.

Besides organic pork, organic vegetables have become one of the most popular Spring Festival gifts. Jin Weiran, general manager of Rizhao Yuli Vegetable

Co, which has produced and traded organic vegetables for more than three years, said sales of organic vegetable have picked up in recent weeks. "People are

paying more attention to the safety of food nowadays, especially in 2011, when a great number of scandals about substandard food were exposed by the

news media," he said.

Jin said the company's organic vegetables are mainly transported to Hong Kong and sold to supermarkets there. But at Spring Festival time, more of his

customers tend to come from the mainland. "More people buy a package of organic vegetables, which costs about 200 yuan, for their friends as the Spring

Festival gifts," he said. "And the demand has surpassed our capacity for production. Healthy foods are more welcome than traditional gifts such as wines and

cigarettes."

The prices of organic vegetables are usually three to four times greater than those of ordinary vegetables, Jin said. "The price of organic pumpkins is about 18

yuan a kilogram, and regular pumpkins cost only 6 yuan a kilogram," he said. "Even though the prices are far more expensive, organic vegetables usually sell

out in a short time."

Fan Zhihong, an assistant professor at China Agricultural University's college of food science and nutritional engineering, said she believes the increasing

popularity of organic food during Spring Festival shows that people want to eat healthier. "Giving organic food - a box containing different kinds of cereals,

for instance - may also serve as a reminder of the importance of having a healthy diet," Fan said. "But when it comes to nutrition, there is no evidence to

suggest that organic food is more nutritional than ordinary food. ... Giving these sorts of presents is more of a way of showing your tastes and expressing

your respect toward the recipient."

(China Daily, 26/01/2012)

Agriculture

Global Times: Food security guaranteed: document

China's food security is generally guaranteed in terms of grain output volume, the country's first policy document for 2012 revealed Thursday, underscoring

the importance of scientific and technological innovation for sustained agricultural growth. "China's grain output reached a record high of 571 million tons in

2011, about 22 percent of the world's total grain output that year," Chen Xiwen, deputy director of the Central Rural Work Leading Group, said at a press

conference marking the release of the No. 1 central document. "China's food security is guaranteed. … Farmers' net incomes rose by more than 13 percent

in 2011, a year that also witnessed the continued improvement in people's livelihoods in rural areas," Chen noted.

Ensuring an effective supply of agricultural products is vital to the country's overall and strategic development amid the complicated global economic

situation, said the document, the ninth of its kind since 2004 to address rural problems. It said the government will continue to expand its fiscal budget for

agriculture in 2012 and play a leading role in investing in agricultural science to ensure "significantly" faster growth compared to fiscal revenues. Data


Page | 17

published at the press conference showed that in 2011, slightly over 50 percent of farmland in the country had effective irrigation, which means that the

output of half of the arable land in China relies heavily on weather conditions.

Agriculture Minister Han Changfu told China Central Television earlier that due to the lack of innovation and talents, current farming technology in rural

areas still lags behind international standards, threatening sustainable agricultural output. "China's food safety is still vulnerable in the face of large-scale,

climate-related disasters," said Zhang Yuanhong, a professor at the Rural Development Institute of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

"China's agriculture also faces structural problems. For example, the production scale of many farming units is too small compared with their foreign

counterparts. This problem cannot be solved overnight, but the practice of agricultural cooperatives and the introduction of modern farming technologies

could bring changes," Zhang told the Global Times. "Besides, with the rapid tempo of urbanization, the area of arable land is shrinking. Young and educated

laborers are going to cities and towns for better incomes. These are all challenges facing the country's agriculture," Zhang noted.

According to data released Thursday, there are 250 million migrant workers from rural areas. The country's urbanization rate is now at 51 percent, which

means that over half of the population lives in urban areas. "The No. 1 document has said that local authorities will work to improve rural community

services to promote advanced technologies to each household. I believe that more detailed measures and regulations will be implemented this year," Zhang

said. The document also sets out a plan to narrow the disparity between urban and rural areas by helping farmers earn more and providing them with

subsidies.

The National Development and Reform Commission announced Thursday that to boost grain production and farmers' incomes, the minimum purchase

price for early indica rice will rise to 120 yuan ($19.04) per 50 kilograms this year, up by 18 yuan from 2011. Prices for mid and late indica rice will also

increase accordingly.

Xu Zhimin, a 61-year-old farmer from Luonan county, Shaanxi Province, told the Global Times that local authorities only give him 100 to 200 yuan for

farming seven mu (1.15 acres) of land each year, plus 70 yuan in subsidies for plastic covering. "I only earn 2,000 yuan a year from selling the grain. I paid

6,000 yuan for a tractor last year with 1,000 yuan in subsidies from the government," Xu said, adding that he has to do other part time jobs to earn enough

income.

The most practical way to reduce the gap between rural and urban residents is to increase the wages of migrant workers, Zhang said, adding that authorities

should also allocate more subsidies and protection measures, such as minimum gain purchase prices, to increase farmers' incomes. The No. 1 document

came at a time when illegal land grabs and related fraud cases have affect social stability in some areas. Late last year, disputes over land use, financing and

local elections in Wukan village, Guangdong Province, led to large-scale protests and a confrontation between police and villagers. The document stressed

Thursday that the government will speed up revisions of relevant laws to improve its policies regarding the use of rural land. The transfer of land rights must

be done on a compensated, voluntary basis and must be conducted in accordance with the law, it said.


Global Times: Water-saving irrigation techniques to boost crops

The central government Wednesday announced funding for water-saving irrigation technologies to be used in major grain-producing regions, a move aimed

at boosting output.

According to a joint statement issued by the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Water Resources and the Ministry of Agriculture, China will invest 38

billion yuan ($6.03 billion) in water-saving irrigation projects covering 2.53 million hectares of farmland in Heilongjiang, Jilin and Liaoning provinces and

Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region from 2012 to 2015. Of the investment, 22.8 billion yuan will come from central government subsidies, 20 percent will

derive from fiscal arrangements by provincial governments in Heilongjiang, Jilin, Liaoning and Inner Mongolia, and local governments at city and county

levels, as well as farmers, will jointly contribute to the remaining portion.

Droughts, natural disasters, and a shortage of water resources have threatened stable grain growth, said the statement. Grain output by Heilongjiang, Jilin,

Liaoning and Inner Mongolia accounts for more than one-fifth of China's grain production. The funding will be used mainly to promote trickle irrigation and

micro-sprinkler irrigation in those regions. China's grain output rose to a record high of 571.21 million tons in 2011, marking eight consecutive years of

growth.


Xinhua: China to deepen agricultural cooperation with U.S.

The agricultural ministries of China and the United States will further enhance agricultural exchanges and cooperation, deepening mutual understanding and

trust, so as to achieve mutually beneficial development in the future, said Minister of Agriculture Han Changfu on Sunday. Han made the remarks in an

interview with Xinhua prior to Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping's visit to the United States.

Agriculture was one of the first areas in which China and the United States began to cooperate, as the two are both large nations of agricultural production,

trade and consumption and viewed agriculture as a strategic and basic industry, said Han. After 30 years development, China-U.S. agricultural cooperation

has laid a solid foundation, with extensive exchanges and cooperation at all levels, the minister said.

According to Han, the agricultural ministries of both countries will push forward cooperation in the areas of food security, sustainable development,

agricultural trade and science and technology, creating opportunities for cooperation between agricultural enterprises of the two countries and promoting

joint research on agriculture. He believes that, with the deepening of agricultural cooperation and the increasing openness of agricultural trade and

investment, bilateral agricultural cooperation will have broader prospects.


Page | 18

Effective Agricultural Science and Technology Cooperation

The United States is a country with advanced agricultural science, technology and research into such fields as seed breeding and production, and has world-

class multinational companies in agriculture, while China has broad market demands as well as leading technologies in food production, biomass energy and

agricultural produce processing, said Han. It will help improving the agricultural science and technology strength of both nations if China and the United

States enhance their cooperation, he argued.

China and the United States have conducted effective cooperation in crop plantation, stock raising, fishery, agricultural research and education, agricultural

product processing and circulation, he explained. The two nations have launched more than 500 science and technology exchange programs since they

established the working group on agricultural science and technology cooperation in 1980, with around 3,000 experts get involved. They have maintained

effective cooperation between academies and universities of agricultural sciences and nurtured a great number of talents, which have made important

contributions for the advancement and development of agricultural science and industry of both nations, said Han.

Fast Growth in Agricultural Trade

Han said the fast growth of bilateral agricultural trade has greatly promoted the industrial restructuring of agriculture and made agricultural produce more

abundant for the two countries. Bilateral agricultural trade volume has increased to 24.5 billion U.S. dollars from 4.1 billion U.S. dollars during 2001 to 2010,

with an average annual growth of 22 percent, according to official statistics. In 2010, China imported 18.6 billion U.S. dollars-worth of agricultural produce

from the United States. This accounted for 13 percent of the United States' total agricultural exports, said Han, noting China has become the main

destination for U.S. agricultural exports. In the same year, China exported 5.8 billion U.S. dollars-worth of agricultural produce to the United States, 12

percent of its total exports in the area. The United States is the third-biggest recipient of Chinese agricultural exports.

Although the proportion of agricultural trade in bilateral total trade volume is not high, the two countries still attach great importance to it due to the unique

features of the agricultural industry, said Han. The growing challenges posed by food security and climate change have also promoted cooperation between

the two agricultural industries, he added.

Increased Cooperation on Agricultural Investment

Han paid great attention to the expansion and reinforcement of bilateral agricultural investment cooperation, noting enterprises are the main driving forces

for the development of bilateral agricultural trade. Since its reform and opening-up, China has attracted and made use of foreign capital to step up its

construction of a modern agricultural industry, he said.

The minister noted that a great number of U.S. enterprises have invested in agriculture in China. From crop-plantation to machinery and sales, these

investments have gained remarkable economic benefit. Foreign investment also introduced advanced technology and management to China, which promoted

the upgrading of its agricultural industry. Chinese investments in U.S. agriculture have also increased in recent years, with growing desire from Chinese

enterprises to invest abroad, according to Han. He called on China and the United States to jointly promote investment cooperation between enterprises of

the two countries in the areas of technology application and sustainable development, and create a good atmosphere for developing bilateral agricultural

trade relations.

Efficient Mechanism for Agricultural Cooperation

Han said the sustainable development of China-U.S. agricultural cooperation has benefited from sound and efficient cooperative mechanisms such as the

China-U.S. Strategic and Economic Dialogue, the China-U.S. Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade and the China-U.S. Joint Commission on

Agriculture. These have established a platform for agricultural cooperation and have given full play to the guiding role of both governments, he said. Under

the sound cooperative mechanisms, the two agricultural ministries have maintained regular contact. In 2011, the two sides held the fourth meeting of the

China-U.S. Joint Commission on Agriculture, which further enhanced its status as the main channel for bilateral agricultural cooperation and tightened

guidance to the two working groups on agricultural sciences and biotechnology, he said. In recent years, the two ministries have also enhanced their

cooperation in agricultural policies, market information, research and development of agricultural sciences and technology, sustainable development and

global food security, said Han.

The United States is a country with advanced agricultural science, technology and research into such fields as seed breeding and production, and has world-

class multinational companies in agriculture, while China has broad market demands as well as leading technologies in food production, biomass energy and

agricultural produce processing, said Han. It will help improving the agricultural science and technology strength of both nations if China and the United

States enhance their cooperation, he argued. China and the United States have conducted effective cooperation in crop plantation, stock raising, fishery,

agricultural research and education, agricultural product processing and circulation, he explained.

The two nations have launched more than 500 science and technology exchange programs since they established the working group on agricultural science

and technology cooperation in 1980, with around 3,000 experts get involved. They have maintained effective cooperation between academies and universities

of agricultural sciences and nurtured a great number of talents, which have made important contributions for the advancement and development of

agricultural science and industry of both nations, said Han.

(Xinhua, 12/02 /2012)

China Daily: Only drops of hope in drought lands

The 2010 drought in Southwest China's Yunnan province was described as the worst since the 1950s. It continued last year, and this year may prove to be

worse yet.

According to provincial civil affairs authorities, more than 2.43 million people and 1.55 million livestock in Yunnan are short of drinking water. "The small

tank I'm using is five kilometers away from my home and the water is really murky, but I have to bring some water back as my family of four need it to

survive," said Xu Wansheng, a 45-year-old farmer in Luliang county, near Qujing, whose wheat land is being used in a water project connecting two

reservoirs. "I will cooperate and do whatever they want as long as the water problem in this place can be solved," he said. The previous day, he tried five


Page | 19

small water tanks around his village to no avail and realized the whole area was without water. More than 651,000 hectares of land have been stricken by the

three-year drought leading to losses in agriculture of 2.22 billion yuan ($353 million).

Zhou Yunlong, head of the Yunnan Provincial Water Resources Bureau, said much depends on the rainfall in March and April. "If there is no rain in the

next two months, Yunnan will be confronted with a severe situation," he said. "We must make drinking water for people and livestock the priority, as lives

come first." Xu owns eight hectares of land and grows wheat, horsebeans and rapeseed in winter. "I stopped growing horsebeans and rapeseed two years ago

because there was not enough water for people to drink, let alone for growing vegetables," he said. "Although I grew some wheat last year with a hope of

some harvest, now you can see the crops have all failed. I won't even get any grain."

The hopes of Wu and many others now rest on getting branch water supply lines from the new underground pipeline project that is planned to cross their

land. "The deep wells we dug all dried up and now we're hoping to link a reservoir with water in Lianhuatian to another one without water in Xiaobaihu to

provide drinking water for people," said Fu Dongxi, deputy chief of Fanghua town. He said the project will cost 35 million yuan, a huge part of Luliang

county's annual revenue, and involved several towns. "This water is to secure the county seat's use, and we are still considering if we should build some

branches along the main pipeline," said Fu.

The average rainfall of Yunnan in 2011 was 869 millimeters, down 21 percent from previous years. According to Yunnan Provincial Meteorological Bureau,

rainfall in winter is usually rare in Yunnan, but abnormal atmospheric conditions in recent years have made the situation worse. The forecast predicts no

change with continued sunny weather and little effective rainfall, and it is feared the drought will further deteriorate in March and April.

The central government initiated emergency measures last week with the National Commission for Disaster Reduction and the Ministry of Civil Affairs

dispatching teams to help with relief work. In Shilin county, 78 km from provincial capital Kunming and famous for its karst stone forest, 70 percent of the

land has been hit by drought.

Li Yong, 45, is working in a small pumping station on Huangzhushan Mountain, 30 km from the town. They are drilling a hole 40 m deep in order to tap

water resources. "The air is really thin and we have to climb out for fresh air every hour," he said. He realized they had to speed up operations as the lives of

more than 3,000 people were depending on this pumping station. With rich water sources found underground in karst areas, the government is shifting its

focus on constructing water projects. Reservoirs will be moved from high ground, where they collect rainfall, to lower regions to access groundwater. After

water shortages in 2010, Yunnan introduced the "five smalls" water conservation project, comprising small water vault, tank, pumping station, pond and

channel. In 2011, the province built 450,000 "five smalls" projects.

"That this year's drought is similar to 2010's is due to an historic lack of water conservation projects in Yunnan," said Zheng Baohua, director of the Rural

Development Institute of Yunnan Academy of Social Sciences. He said as a mountainous region, Yunnan normally receives less funding for large- and

medium-size water projects from the central government, and the level of construction remains quite low. "Yunnan increased construction of water facilities'

over the past two years," he said. "But due to a consistent lack of rain, the newly built projects couldn't perform to their best, so this region is still facing the

problem of weak facilities."

Ma Hongqi, of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, said that building a water diversion project in the middle of the province is one way of solving drought

problems. "Building small water conservation projects is okay but can't solve the fundamental problem," he said. "Directing water from the Yangtze River in

northwestern Yunnan to the central part would effectively solve the water problem in six cities in central Yunnan."

Earlier this month, Qin Guangrong, secretary of the Yunnan Provincial Committee of the Communist Party of China, said at a meeting that the government

would spend around 600 million yuan on water diversion projects in 2012.


China Daily: China's $192b boost to agriculture production

China will continue its efforts to boost agricultural production by developing technology and investing in rural infrastructure, said Chinese Premier Wen

Jiabao at the fifth session of the 11th National People's Congress on Monday. "We will continue to carry out activities to steadily increase grain production,"

said Premier Wen Jiabao. "We will continue increase agricultural subsidies…and improve the mechanism for subsidizing major growing areas," he added.

The central government this year plans to allocate 1.2287 trillion yuan ($192 billion), an increase of 186.8 billion yuan from last year, for developing the

agricultural industry, rural areas and improving farmers' livelihood. "With these funds we will build and upgrade water-saving facilities in irrigated areas…and

vigorously develop water-efficient agriculture," Wen said.

In the meantime, the government will also promote innovations in agricultural science and technology and increase support for their research and

development, Wen said. "We will improve the system for subsidizing agricultural technologies and encourage farmers to use advanced and appropriate

agricultural technologies," he added.

According to the Report on Central and Local Budget for 2012, released by the Ministry of Finance on Monday, the ministry will earmark 10.1 billion yuan,

53 percent up from last year, to increase funding for agricultural science and technology. This investment will support scientific and technological

developments in areas including modern seed industry, the ministry said.



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GMO

Global Times: Draft law seeks to ban unauthorized use of genetically modified food

The production, trade and consumption of unauthorized genetically modified (GM) grain will be banned in China, according to the draft of China's first

grain law, which was released by the State Council on Tuesday to solicit opinions from the public. "Research, experiments, production, sales, imports and

exports of the seeds of genetically modified grain should meet relevant national regulations, and no institution or individual should apply genetic

modification technology to main grain breeds without authorization," the draft law says.

"It is the first time GM food control laws have been made at the national level, reflecting the fact that the national government has taken opposing opinions

of GM food into consideration," Fang Lifeng, the director of agriculture and food projects at Greenpeace China, told the Global Times.

The commercial cultivation of GM rice and GM corn is currently forbidden in China, so they will not appear in China's market, Chen Xiwen, the deputy

head of a central government rural work team, said earlier.

However, wide-scale unauthorized GM rice cultivation was discovered by Greenpeace in Hubei Province in 2005. About 90 percent of soybean oil sold in

China is made from GM soybean imported from the US, Fang said. "The soybean imported into China could only be used as raw materials but not as seeds

for planting." "The authorities are taking a prudent attitude toward the commercial cultivation of GM products," said Liu Shi, the former manager of

Longping High-Tech Company, which specializes in seed production. "GM food has not proven to be free of potential harm to human health, because the

commercialization of GM food production is currently in its very early stages," Liu said.

"On the other hand, if there was a loophole in the management of GM product cultivation, it might lead to very bad consequences for the environment and

ecological balance."

According to a survey conducted by Greenpeace and Tsinghua University in 2010 in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou, 70 percent of about 1,000

participants said they would not eat GM rice.


Caixin: Under Draft "Grains Law," No GM Rice

A draft version of China's first-ever Grains Law outlaws companies from genetically-modifying staple foods like rice, corn and wheat.

Earlier this month, Origin Agritech Ltd. Chairman Han Gengchen was optimistic. By 2013, he predicted, his company would be the first to commercially

produce genetically-modified (GM) corn in China, after years of government clearances and delays. Han's wait, however, may extend beyond 2013. Days

after his announcement, the Chinese government signaled that it may be far from approving bioengineered corn and rice, in its first-ever "Grains Law" draft

legislation released February 21. "Neither group nor individual may apply genetically-modified technologies to staple foods," the legislation reads. Although

the draft does not clarify what exactly constitutes a "staple food," in China the classification typically includes rice, corn and wheat.

The legislation comes amid widespread public concern in China over the safety of GM foods, as well as their environmental risks. In 2010, 85 percent of

respondents to a survey conducted by China Daily and the Internet portal Sohu.com said they were concerned about the potential health hazards of GM

foods, which are altered for advantages like pest or disease resistance, or nutrition.

Currently, only papayas, tomatoes and bell peppers have attained clearance for commercial GM production in China. Although GM rice production is

currently illegal, Bt63 strain rice seeds have been circulating around China as early as 2005. For all the controversy, no conclusive scientific evidence exists to

prove that GM foods harm humans, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention Food Expert Wu Yongning told China Daily in 2010.

Scientific data from the past decades or so, however, has revealed a number of environmental effects and risks. For example, in 2001, scientists found that

pollen from one strain of Bt corn in the United States proved lethal to monarch butterfly larvae. Pesticide-resistant GM plants, moreover, can encourage the

increased use of pest-killing chemicals, leading to unintended resistance in other nearby plants. Some scientists suspect that pesticide-resistant horseweed has

proliferated in the United States because of GM foods and increased chemical spraying around the country. In other cases, plants engineered to withstand

bugs or other environmental threats may not need pesticides in the first place. According to the non-profit International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-

biotech Application, which promotes GM crops, the expansion of GM plants between 1996 and 2006 prevented 224,000 tons of pesticides from being

sprayed onto crops globally. "I don't object to the commercialization of GM rice," Nanjing Research Institute of Environmental Science biodiversity

specialist Xue Dayuan told Xinhua News, "but I'm concerned about its risks."

(Caixin, 02/23/2012)

Milk

Global Times: Dairy firm probed after baby dies, twin sickened

Commerce authorities in East China on Thursday said they were investigating a leading dairy company after claims that a baby died from drinking its milk

formula surfaced on the Internet.

It is reported that a twin in rural Jiangxi Province suffered from diarrhea and uncontrollable shaking after drinking milk formula from the Nasdaq-listed

Synutra International, Inc. The baby boy died hours later in a pediatric hospital, according to widely viewed online posts that quoted the twin's family.


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Authorities have sealed the same batch of Synutra products in the county of Duchang, where the case was reported, and sent samples for testing, said

officials with the county's bureau of industry and commerce. The test results will be known on Friday, they said.

The mother of the twin Cao Haijuan told Xinhua that her son died in hospital late last Saturday hours after drinking Synutra's Youbo milk formula. He was

buried on Tuesday while the daughter, who was also sick, was discharged from the hospital on Wednesday.

It is the latest scandal to hit Synutra after the melamine contamination incident more than three years ago. The company said in an online statement that the

actual cause of the baby's death remains unknown but baby formula does not normally cause any of the reported symptoms. Synutra said it offers its

condolences to the baby's parents and has appealed to the Ministry of Public Security to launch a serious investigation and properly settle the issue.


Meat

Global Times: Pigs get bar codes to improve pork safety

Beijing citizens will be able to check the provenance of pork after purchase at a number of supermarkets from Wednesday, said an officer from the Beijing

Municipal Commission of Commerce Saturday. Supermarkets providing the service include 18 Carrefour and 46 Chaoshifa supermarkets, the Beijing Times

reported Sunday. The pigs can be traced from transportation to slaughter by using a bar code at the supermarkets, through mobile phones or online, said

Yan Xiaoyan, deputy director of the commission at a government meeting.

"The systems are in use at the city's main slaughter houses including Wuruolian and Pengcheng," an employee surnamed Gao from the system provider Beijing ZHD laser company told the Global Times Sunday. "Instead of stamping the traditional blue mark, the new system stamps a laser code, which contains the required qualifications from commerce and agriculture departments for the pigs after they are slaughtered," Gao said.

The blue marks can be faked, but it is extremely difficult to fake the laser code, she noted. The system will cover all the swine slaughter houses, wholesale markets and supermarkets in Beijing within two years, the report said.

"Implementing this tracking system is useful to ensure food safety," said Nan Qingxian, former Dean of the College of Food Science & Nutritional Engineering at China Agricultural University. Whether a pig is slaughtered by individuals or at regulated factories can be identified. "Privately slaughtered swine may not be trustworthy as people can inject water into pork." However, according to the Beijing Times report, so far the system is not effective in tracking where and by whom the pigs were raised. "Some animal diseases, and problems caused by pig feed may occur at the breeding stage," Nan noted.


South China Morning Post: Hogs go upmarket as tastes change

Amid widespread concerns for food safety, internet company NetEase starts building its own pig farm on mountain land to produce 'safe, delicious' meat.

Being able to afford pork was once a symbol of wealth for Chinese. Today, the mainland produces half of the world's pork and because pork prices weigh so

heavily on the nation's inflation data, some internet commenters even refer to the CPI as the "China Pig Index".

Steadily growing demand for the meat and widespread concerns for food safety across the mainland has attracted more investors to dabble in the pig-raising

industry in recent years, among other agriculture-related sectors. The best-known example may be the plan by Chinese internet company NetEase to run its

own pig farm in order to produce "safe, delicious" pork.

More than two years after company founder Ding Lei announced the plan in 2009, NetEase recently released the design of its pig farm, which it started

building in the mountains of Anji , Zhejiang , in March. Bai Lei , director of marketing for NetEase's agriculture department, said the decision to locate the

farm in the mountains was made because the area has an advantage in terms of epidemic prevention - the company had promised to not medicate pigs. The

farm, covering about 80 hectares of mountain land, features more than 30 buildings, including offices, feed-storage facilities and pigsties, which will house

around 100,000 pigs when the farm is operational, Bai said, without giving a starting date. "To protect the local ecology, we haven't ruined the vegetation or

altered the original terrain," he said, "so not all of the 80 hectares of land is used. We used just a small portion of it to construct buildings". The pigs will live

in overhead structures built on stilts in order to keep vegetation where it is. Unlike traditional pigsties, which are dirty and crowded, the NetEase pig farm

will provide an average of two square metres of space for each pig, it said, adding that these measures provide a safer environment for the pigs so they are

kept healthy enough to not need medication.

Ding's motivation to raise pigs reportedly came as a way to provide safe meat after a hotpot restaurant served him pig-blood pudding that he believed to be

unsafe. He told the Nanfang Daily in a report early last year that the mainland's breeding industry used 97,000 tonnes of antibiotics in 2010. "Can you

imagine how many antibiotics each chicken and pig has eaten?" he said.

According to the National Bureau of Statistics, the mainland produced more than 50 million tonnes of pork in 2010, accounting for 64 per cent of all the

meat it produced. Li Shuilong , head of the China Meat Association, said in November that the massive figure accounted for 49 per cent of the world's pork

production that year.

NetEase has not said how it will price its pigs, but Bai said the prices would definitely be high enough to ensure profits. "Because our initial plan was to

extend [the pig farm gradually], we would definitely need profits to make this happen," Bai said, adding that a detailed pricing scheme would be released

when the time is right. He Zhonghua , an analyst from Chinameat.cn, a website under the China Meat Association, said NetEase's way of raising pigs was not

worth expanding. "The market for high-end pork is limited, and this makes it hard to enlarge its production," he warned, adding that many businesses in the

meat industry had tried to be different in management, but none of them had achieved large outputs. "Besides, it's basically impossible to always keep


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domestic animals away from illnesses," he said. "One has to consider everything in the raising process, from the selection of species to the feed, which might

contain residual pesticide." He believed that the solution to providing safe pork was the replacement of individual pig farmers by large corporate pig farms.

"When the number of pigs raised on a farm is big, the potential profits are higher, and the owner won't bother taking the risk of using `lean meat powder' to

lower the pigs' fat content," he said.

(South China Morning, 31/01/2012)

Fish

The Guardian: Shangri-La hotels take shark fin soup off the menu

The resort company's move, coming just ahead of the Chinese New Year festivities, is a huge boost to the campaign to protect decimated shark stocks by

banning the dish

The campaign to reduce the demand for shark fins achieved its greatest victory to date on Wednesday when the Shangri-la hotel group announced that it

would no longer serve the dish, which is decimating populations of the ocean predator. The resort company, which operates 72 hotels, took the step just

days before the Chinese spring festival, the main season for shark fin soup consumption at banquets in Hong Kong and the mainland. It is estimated that

between 26 million and 73 million sharks are killed each year to supply this billion-dollar industry. Almost a third are consumed during Chinese new year.

But conservationists' efforts to reduce demand have gained pace and prominence in the past year, particularly since WildAid international ambassador and

basketball star Yao Ming spoke out against shark fin soup. In November, the Peninsula hotel became the first traditional hotel in Hong Kong – the centre of

the trade – to remove the dish from its restaurants. It was followed by 112 companies who signed up to a "Say No" initiative to remove shark fin from

corporate banquets.

Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts has now gone a step further by unveiling a "sustainable seafood policy" that also includes a commitment to phase out the use

of other endangered marine species, including Bluefin tuna and Chilean sea bass. The company had previously taken shark fin off its restaurant menus, but

offered the dish on demand. The move was welcomed by conservationists as a sign that some major corporations are starting to take sustainability more

seriously. "This is very significant. Two leading hotel groups have now sent a very strong message to the food and beverage industry and the wedding

industry. I don't see why others don't follow suit," said Bertha Lo of the Hong Kong Shark Foundation.

However, there is still a long way to go. The foundation's recent survey of 64 leading Hong Kong hotels found that 98% served at least one endangered

marine species. Almost all included shark fin, which is particularly popular at wedding banquets. Very few had policies for sustainable seafood sourcing.

Conservationists said corporate social responsibility programmes had improved in recent years to include energy efficiency and carbon dioxide emissions, but

still usually neglected impacts on wildlife. "We are seeing announcements one by one, but it is not enough just to stop serving shark fin," said Stanley Shea of

Bloom Association, a Hong Kong-based NGO. "Hotels also need to put in place public policies on sustainable seafood sourcing."

The government in Hong Kong has yet to act, although surveys by the Bloom foundation suggest that 88% of consumers want the authorities to prevent

sales of products that involve killing threatened species. It is believed the mainland could move faster than the territory – as it has done with air pollution.

But most hotels in Chinese cities will continue to serve shark fin as a traditional part of the festivities to usher in the year of the dragon on 23 January.

Among them is the Grand Hyatt in Beijing, which was offering a new year special spring festival banquet of 888 yuan (£91.50) per person, including shark

fin soup. Outside of the holiday season, it offers the soup alone from 468 yuan (£48) to over a thousand yuan. "It depends on the type of shark. We have all

types," a restaurant employee said.

(The Guardian, 18/01/2012)


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Now available at: http://kina.um.dk/en/the-trade-council/menu-4/

Agricultural Commodities

“China is the World’s largest food producer, but also one of the largest food consumers. In later years the agricultural sector

has undergone thorough modernization and mechanization, which continue to be top priorities as noted in China’s 12th 5-

year-plan. Further efficiency improvements in the sector are crucial preconditions for China to achieve other objectives

including supporting the continuous urbanization and contributing to rising incomes in rural areas. The agricultural sector

however remains underdeveloped and structural implications such as limited area of agricultural land and access to water

resources are challenges that will need to be tackled in the future as demand for food continues to rise. In spite of the

government’s explicit goal of high self-sufficiency rates, the demand for imported food will thus continue to increase in

forthcoming years.”

Food

“Consumption is assumed to be the main driver of the Chinese economy in the coming decade, and China’s food sector is

currently one of the country’s fastest growing sectors, with output rising by more than 20% annually. This development is

backed by continuous growth in GDP as well as increased income levels and buying power among consumers. Especially the

rapidly growing middle class whose consumption patterns are shifting towards food items of higher value such as more meat

and dairy remains a key driver. This will also open up for increased food exports to China in coming years”

Now available at: http://markedsinformation.um.dk/Markeder/Asien/Kina.aspx

“The organic sector is following a remarkable growth path, where the increasing consciousness among consumers in regards to

health and food safety is a key motive for Chinese consumers to buy organic food. Generally, consumers are not fully aware of

the concept of organic food, and the certification system remains a considerable trade barrier for foreign exporters to China.

Organic food is however expected to see increases in sales in coming years as consumers in China increasingly demand high

quality, safe and healthy food and the middle class continues to expand.”

Now available at: http://markedsinformation.um.dk/Markeder/Asien/Kina.aspx

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Documents

Edited by: Minister Counsellor (Food, Agriculture ......success. Many Chinese people prefer saving their money due to the high costs incurred in connection to illness, unemployment