China-Nordic forum share food safety knowhows

Food safety experts and officials from China and Nordic countries shared their experiences in food supervision and management at a forum held today at the Nordic Lighthouse in Shanghai.

The Sino-Nordic Forum on Food Safety focused on Nordic countries' practice in combating poultry diseases, China's farm-to-table tracking system, Nordic hygiene standards for salmonella prevention, milk production, and seafood storage in shipping. The participants also discussed China's food safety problems and solutions. 

The Nordic countries of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden share the view that food producers should take the greater responsibility for food safety while the government is responsible for setting standards, monitoring food suppliers, and make interventions based on risk assessments, said Henrik Hoegh, Danish minister of food, agriculture and fishery. 

The Nordic countries insist on transparency in the food industry to ensure consumers have the right to all relevant information on the food they buy and eat, Hoegh said. 

There is a labeling scheme in all Nordic countries, which provide consumers with information on products or service. One example is the Smiley system in Denmark, where restaurants and bars must hang up a poster with information on production conditions, hygiene and food storage. 

The collaboration between the government and regional authorities in managing and supervising food safety ensure that any food problem can be traced and tackled in Nordic countries, said Sirkka-Liisa Antitila, Finnish minister of agriculture and forestry. 

The Nordic countries have been successful in controlling the occurrence of zoonosis, as Finland, Norway and Sweden have regulations and an extensive system for controlling salmonella in animals and fodder, she said.

The forum was jointly hosted by the Nordic Council of Ministers and the China's General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine. 

The Nordic Lighthouse, a converted factory building on the bank of Huangpu River facing Lujiazui, is an extension of Nordic countries' showcases in the World Expo.

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