What are you staring at? I can kill you: The dangerous bumblebee or yellow-backed poison dart frog almost entered the country through a parcel in 2015 if not intercepted by a bureau in Beijing. (Photo : Getty Images)
The General Administration of Quality, Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine vows to tighten measures concerning the inspection of imported and exported plants and animals, reported China Daily.
It is possible that animals and plants carry diseases and pests that can harm human health. They can serve as hosts to harmful bacteria and viruses.
"We must build a firm network at the gate to ensure domestic security," said AQSIQ Minister Zhi Shuping.
Minister Zhi said that his department will coordinate with the Ministry of Agriculture and the State Post Bureau.
Contaminated seeds and sprouts can enter the country through parcels and mails.
AQSIQ will use better devices for inspecting packages coming from abroad.
Authorities will likewise check those tourists crossing the border if they happen to bring with them seeds or sprouts, and inspect if such contain any harmful elements.
In 2015, AQSIQ prevented the entry of 5,788 harmful species.
If the government will be lax on its inspections particularly of exported goods, it can experience “great economic loss,” said Minister Zhi.
A package from Hong Kong containing poisonous frogs almost entered the country in Sept. 2015. The Entry-Exit Inspection and Quarantine Bureau in Beijing was able to intercept the package containing yellow-banded poison dart frog (Dendrobates leucomelas), also known as bumblebee poison frog or yellow-headed poison dart frog.
Dendrobates produce skin secretions that “are potentially lethal if absorbed through human mucous membranes or passed into the body through a cut on the skin,” according to Encyclopaedia Britannica.
From the inspections it carried out from 2011-2015, AQSIQ has so far suspended 45 companies, according to CRIEnglish.
Even endangered species are being exported to the country, said Minister Zhi.
Chinese authorities in Shenzhen dumped 34 metric tons of bananas from the Philippines in March, according to Fruitnet.
The Philippine Bureau of Plant Industry said that it will audit the company that exported the bananas to China.
A technical group from the Philippine Department of Agriculture will fly to China to discuss the matter with AQSIQ officials.
China permits the Philippines to export bananas, mangoes, papayas and pineapples to the country.
According to the California Strawberry Commission, Chinese officials will go to California for a final inspection of its strawberries, reported the company on its website on March 24.
“We are honored that the Chinese have allowed California to be the first location in the world to ship strawberries to China,” said Rick Tomlinson, president of CSC.
At the end of 2015, four additional countries were allowed to export their fruits to China, according to AQSIQ website. These countries were Kyrgyzstan, North Korea, South Korea and Sri Lanka.
