March: BiodefenseCargill to promote food safety training in China

Not a moment too soon: Cargill has announced that it will establish in China a joint international food safety management-training program with AQSIQ. Cargill will partner with AQSIQ to provide Chinese government officials, academics, and business leaders with food safety training to expand their expertise and knowledge in food safety management. Cargill signed a Memorandum of Understanding with General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine of the People’s Republic of China (AQSIQ) formally to launch the technical exchange program. Wei Chuanzhong, vice minister of AQSIQ, and Greg Page, chairman and chief executive officer of Cargill attended the signing ceremony.

AQSIQ will select 20 to 25 senior-level participants for the program which will begin later this year. Cargill will provide financial support for the program and lend its expertise to design and implement a food safety training and leadership development program. Participants will include senior government officials, senior food safety scientists from academia, and senior management personnel of leading Chinese agriculture and food companies. The two-week program will include food safety training from the private sector, international food standards organizations, government officials, and academic institutions located in Europe and North America. The agreement also includes an option to extend the program for additional years if there is mutual agreement between Cargill and AQSIQ. This program is part of a global initiative involving Cargill and selected academic, inter-governmental and non-governmental institutions aiming better to harmonize global food safety systems and standards across the world. The two sides said that through better global food safety leadership training and development, this program will help enhance food safety leadership in China and throughout the global food system.

“Cargill is a world leader in food safety. We operate over 1,200 food and animal feed facilities in more than 60 countries. We want to share our knowledge and expertise with our Chinese partners,” Page said. “Li Changjiang, the minister of AQSIQ, and I reached an agreement on this program by direct communication. Safe food is a global concern. We produce food in China to the same standards we do in the United States or Europe. I’m very pleased that AQSIQ will work together with Cargill to provide cooperation on global best practices in the food safety management area.” Page added: “Through this exciting program, we will share expertise about global food systems and the latest food safety information with Chinese officials, scientists and academics. The participants will also have opportunities to talk with their western government counterparts, intergovernmental organizations and multinational corporate partners. Cargill hopes many Chinese officials, scientists and business executives will benefit from this program to promote a secure, safe food supply for the Chinese people and global consumer.”

Cargill’s trading with China goes bacl more than three decades. The company started trade with China soon after President ichard Nixon’s visit in 1972. Cargill’s annual trade value with China today is around $5 billion. Currently, Cargill sells grains, oilseeds, steel products, sugar, fruit juices, meats, and other commodities to China while exporting Chinese commodities such as steel, apple juice, and corn. Cargill operates 34 wholly owned companies and joint ventures within 20 provinces and municipalities in China. Projects range from soybean crushing in Guangdong to corn processing in Jilin and animal feed production in Sichuan.