China: 26 Draft National Food Safety Standards Released

On August 4, 2015, NHFPC (National Health and Family Planning Commission of the PRC) published draft version of 26 national food safety standards and asked for public comments.

Interested stakeholders can submit their comments online, by logging into the national food safety standards management information system (in Chinese). The deadline for submitting public comments is September 10, 2015.

What food standards are included?

The proposed new standards will regulate testing methods for various components found in food products and food contact materials, general safety requirements for foods and food contact materials, certain hygiene standards (including drinking water and dairy products), determination methods for certain nutrients (vitamins) and other issues, all of which are listed below.

Food Safety in China

China NHFPC is responsible for issuing food safety standards according to the Chinese Food Safety Law. It has been continuously publishing new standards and revising old national food safety standards since the Food Safety Law has been passed in 2009.

In 2015 a revised Food Safety Law was adopted, modernising the Chinese food safety system further. It will come into force on October 1, 2015 and will repeal the 2009 Food Safety Law.

Draft Food Safety Standards

The 26 national food safety standards are listed here:

1. Drinking natural mineral water testing method
2. Determination of sodium diacetate in food
3. Determination of benzene and (a) pyrene in food
4. Determination of algal toxins in aquatic products
5. Determination of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBS) in food packaging paper
6. Determination of content and migration content of di-2-ethylhexyl adipate in food contact material
7. Determination of PFOS and PFOA in food contact material
8. Determination of methyl methacrylate in food contact material
9. Determination of ethyl benzene and styrene in food contact material
10. Determination of creosote in cork
11. Determination of caprolactam content and migration content in food contact material
12. Hygiene standard of cold storage, distribution of cold dairy product
13. Hygiene standard of packaged drinking water production
14. General safety requirement of food contact material and product
15. Cooked meat product
16. Determination of Iodine in food
17. Determination of paralytic shellfish poison in shellfish
18. Determination of ciguatoxin in aquatic products
19. Determination of 9 antioxidants in food
20. Determination of Vitamin B2 in food
21. Determination of Vitamin K1 in food
22. General principle of pretreatment method of migration test for food contact material
23. Determination of content and migration content of Phthalate in food contact material
24. Determination of migration content of melamine in food contact material
25. Determination of Diaminotoluene in composite food packaging
26. Determination of migration content ofω-aminoundecanoic in food contact material

Links to draft standards can be found here  and here (in Chinese).