Some formaldehyde in your biscuit?

We realize that the U.S. government can do a better job monitoring food being grown, processed and packaged in this country - the E. coli scares being the most recent example - but our shortcomings are strictly peanuts compared with what's going on in China. Or haven't you heard the latest? Regulators there announced that they've closed 180 food plants and that inspectors had uncovered more than 23,000 food safety violations. We're not talking about refrigerators being a degree or two off - China Daily reports that dyes, mineral oils, paraffin wax, formaldehyde and malachite green had been found in candy, pickles, biscuits and seafood. The government roundup also discovered illegal food making dens, counterfeit bottled water, fake soy sauce, banned food additives and illegal meat processing plants. And if you're into shark fin and ox tendon, be aware that some of it is being processed with sodium hydroxide and hydrochloric acid. Call me paranoid, but I've got a hunch that's not so good. Part of what's happening come down to simple corruption, but not all. From the NYT:

A.T. Kearney issued a report this week saying one cause of food safety problems is a lack of cold storage and logistics systems. The consulting firm said China needs to invest about $100 billion over the next 10 years to upgrade its logistics and cold storage capabilities and to implement new standards. In China, the study said, there are only about 30,000 cold storage trucks. In the U.S., there are about 280,000. “In the entire supply chain there’s no common standard or world class standard,” said Zhang Bing, who helped prepare the study. “There are a lot of things contributing to the food safety problem. There are companies putting chemicals into food. But there’s also a lot of spoilage.”