By now, the “Made in China” label is fairly infamous. It’s come to be nearly synonymous with poor quality, questionable manufacturing practices, and unhealthy ingredients.
Given this tainted reputation, it’s no small wonder that corporations don’t try to hide the Chinese origin of their products more often—and it’s even more incredible that companies continue to import products from China at all. Sadly, it seems that the cheap prices offered by Chinese manufacturers are just too good to pass up—and it’s doubtful that this trend will change until our society begins valuing the health of the body and the planet more highly than profit.
This “profit over people” mentality appears even more absurd when you examine some of the atrocities of the Chinese manufacturing sector, which seems to respect no boundaries of decency whatsoever. The stories only seem to get worse over time: inhumane conditions in sweatshops, sex trafficking, chemical contamination, and environmental degradation.
In recent years, the world was even shocked to learn that corrupt Chinese doctors were selling aborted babies to supplement manufacturers (and sometimes even directly to individual consumers), who used their flesh to make a stamina-boosting pill.
While this kind of depravity is certainly not representative of all Chinese businesses, the issue is that China’s health safety regulatory system is woefully inadequate, and thus unable to prevent even the most heinous violations. Chinese processing plants have routinely been deemed unsafe by U.S. officials, and Chinese food products are notoriously contaminated by pesticides, industrial chemicals, and other health-sapping substances.
But the show must go on…
This checkered history hasn’t stopped the United States from building further trade relations with China, though. In fact, the volume of food imports has grown over the last decade anywhere from 100% to more than 200,000%.[1]
Until China does a serious overhaul on their entire food safety system, it’s best to avoid all food products from China whenever possible. This is more easily said than done, though—China has become the third largest exporter of agricultural products to the United States.
And as we discussed in a past article, many Chinese products are being sold as “organic,” even though they don’t meet any of the criteria necessary to be labeled as such. Even Whole Foods has had to reformulate some of their 365 Brand products after being scolded for using Chinese “organic” ingredients.
There are, however, some Chinese food products that are especially important to avoid. Here’s a list of the biggest offenders…
Fish. The fish imported from China are raised in deplorable, polluted conditions, and offer almost none of the usual health benefits that come from consuming wild, uncontaminated fish. Tilapia (80% of which comes from China) and cod fish (50% of which comes from China) are particularly worrisome, because they bottom-feed in notoriously polluted water, and thus are riddled with toxins.
Poultry. If you think the U.S. factory farms where chickens are raised are bad, you should see the ones in China. They’re bigger, dirtier, and downright offensive even to those who don’t have moral issues with eating animals. Avian flu and other foodborne illnesses often run rampant, which means Chinese chickens are also pumped full of antibiotics and other chemicals.
Nevertheless, in 2013, the U.S. Department of Agriculture approved the sale of chicken imported from China—even though there’s no comprehensive system set up to ensure quality.
The USDA now even allows U.S.-raised chickens to be shipped to China for cheaper processing, in which case the product won’t even bear the “Made in China” stamp to help you steer clear. Stick to locally raised, certified-organic poultry whenever possible.
Fake foods. If you thought that China’s money-making schemes couldn’t get any weirder, get this: for some time, manufacturers have been making fake rice out of potatoes and plastic resin. Other manufacturers have been caught selling dried mud as black pepper, fake peas made out of soybeans, food coloring, and sodium metabisulfate, and industrial chemicals as table salt—all in the name of higher profits. In recent years, companies were shut down for lacing their baby formula and pet food with melamine, a toxic industrial byproduct that artificially raises the measurement of protein content.
Polluted produce. The fruits and vegetables imported from China are drenched in toxic pesticides like methyl bromide, as well as a whole host of other chemical pollutants and pathogens. Apple juice is of particular concern, simply because the odds of any given apple juice being imported from China are 2 out of 3. Other popular Chinese imports include garlic, processed mushrooms, spinach, cauliflower, peaches, pineapples, pears, onions, and broccoli.[2]
Just say NO
The moral of the story is that products of the current Chinese food system should not be trusted. Don’t be seduced by low prices—stick with organic products from vetted sources (local whenever possible), and save money by avoiding processed and packaged foods (raw produce is much less expensive, and it’s way healthier for you anyway).
It may be quite a while before our international food system evolves beyond the vile practices discussed above, but in the meantime, all it takes is a bit of attention and vigilance to ensure that your health isn’t affected by the products of unscrupulous manufacturers and importers.
References
[1] https://www.foodandwaterwatch.org/sites/default/files/Dangerous%20Food%20Imports%20China%20Report%20Jun%202011.pdf
