Another day, another disturbing announcement about Chinese products. The latest is a big kettle of fish — literally. On June 28, the Food and Drug Administration announced a ban on all farm-raised shrimp, catfish, eel, basa (which is similar to catfish) and dace (which is similar to carp) from China. 

The reason: “Current and continuing evidence that certain Chinese aquaculture products imported into the United States contain illegal substances that are not permitted in seafood sold in the United States,” is how the agency’s assistant commissioner for food protection, Dr. David Acheson, succinctly announced it. 

Specifically, through targeted sampling from October 2006 through May 2007, the FDA repeatedly found that farm-raised seafood from China contained antimicrobial agents not approved for use here: nitrofuran, malachite green, gentian violet and fluoroquinolone. The first three have been linked to cancer in laboratory animals; the last may increase antibiotic resistance. 

The FDA is taking the action because it said it was concerned about long-term exposure to these antimicrobials. Thus, it is not seeking a recall or advising consumers to destroy or return any of these products.  The federal watchdog agency couldn't summarily recall the fish even if it wanted to; with the exception of infant formula, the FDA doesn't have mandatory recall authority over food products; only the company can. The agency will only allow future imports if companies prove their products are free of these chemical residues. 

Consumers Union, the publisher of Consumer Reports, commends the FDA for taking this action.  “Strong action is clearly warranted based on the FDA’s alarming findings of broad-based contamination problems with antimicrobial agents and harmful additives that aren’t approved for fish production in the U.S.,” said Urvashi Rangan, senior scientist and policy analyst with Consumers Union. 

Unfortunately — and we’re beginning to sound like a broken record here since we’ve said this before and know we’ll be saying this again — the latest FDA announcement also highlights the problems involved in policing a nation’s food supply, especially as food imports increase. 

The FDA says it is currently inspecting only about one percent of all food imports and about five percent of fish imported from China, due to stepped-up monitoring. Needless to say, the FDA needs to do more. And it “needs to do far more testing, including testing of farmed fish from other Asian countries such as Vietnam, India, and Indonesia,” said Jean Halloran, Director of Food Policy Initiatives for CU. 

We urge Congress and the White House to give FDA the funding it needs to beef up its inspections — as well as the power to issue mandatory recalls. 

In the meantime, the FDA action serves as a bold reminder that consumers have to become ever more vigilant about the food they eat. Rangan said. “Consumers should not buy the fish if they have any questions about its country of origin.” We agree with the FDA that the use of the antimicrobials poses a long-term health risk, but there certainly is no need to expose yourself to even small quantities of such chemicals for even a short period of time. 

Previously: 

• Can you trust Chinese-made products?
• Thomas & Friends recall: 1.5 million trains and accessories for lead
• Toothpaste trouble: what you need to know now
• Tainted animal feed: Why the government's approach isn't working