The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is expanding its workforce in China in accordance with an agreement signed last year by the administration and China, according to a China Daily report.
The agreement, the FDA said on Tuesday, provides for the addition of seven more food inspectors and 10 additional drug inspectors in its office in Beijing. With the added staff, the FDA will have a total of 27 American and seven Chinese employees.
"The staff increase permits us to work more closely with our Chinese counterparts to become knowledgeable about practices here. We can work with both the Chinese government and the industry to explain our requirements and provide training support for those exporting to the U.S. to comply with our standards," said Michael R. Taylor, deputy commissioner for foods at the FDA.
"Food safety is a very dynamic challenge, and the food system is becoming more technologically complicated and global," Taylor continued.
The FDA's China office monitors processes that ensure the safety, quality and effectiveness of FDA-regulated products made in China meant to be exported to the U.S.
Wu Yongning, chief scientist at the China National Center for Food Safety Risk Assessment, said that the Chinese government is also looking to deploy safety inspectors to the U.S. Acknowledging a more globalized food and drug-supply chain, the move would expedite inspections of particularly high-risk producers before they are actually imported to the country, he said.
Pacific Management Consulting Group founder John Gordon, meanwhile, agreed that globalization has given rise to new challenges to ensuring food safety.
"No one could have predicted the phenomenal growth in food trade in the world. Now there is an increase in expectations for food safety that is coming from all corners of the globe," he said.
Proper supply-chain management is important to maintaining safety standards, Gordon said.