China has success in food smuggling crackdown

BEIJING - Chinese customs authorities have put 114 smuggling cases of agricultural products on file for investigation since beginning a nationwide crackdown at the beginning of this year.

The cases involved 1.46 billion yuan ($235.2 million), the General Administration of Customs (GAC) said Thursday.

Zhu Feng, deputy head of the administration's anti-smuggling bureau, said the GAC initiated an intensive one-year campaign, running till the end of December, to combat smuggling of agricultural products.

Nanning, Kunming and Jinan customs have ferreted out a large amount of sugar, rice and cotton in the campaign, he said.

Zhu said rising production costs in China have driven up prices of domestic agricultural products, fueling smuggling activities.

The administration's figures showed that China seized 14,000 tonnes of sugar, 52,000 tonnes of rice and 94,000 tonnes of frozen meat in the crackdown last year.

Food safety problems have emerged with the smuggling as a third of the frozen meat confiscated last year, about 30,000 tonnes, came from epidemic-stricken areas, according to Zhu.

Smuggling also affects domestic food production and results in losses of taxes, the official said.