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jp4m2 · 05-26-2009, 04:18 PM

I was shocked when I read this....I think we are all under some false thinking that "someone " is looking out for our safety and welfare and that is just not so......

Bill Would Give FDA Resources for Inspections - Pharmaceutical Technology

excerpt:
“In China, the world's largest producer of active pharmaceutical ingredients, and where we have seen increasing reports of contaminated products, only 11 inspections were conducted during FY 2007,” Grassley said in his statement. “During the same year, FDA conducted 14 inspections in Switzerland, 18 in Germany, and 24 in France—all countries with advanced regulatory infrastructures,” he added.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/02/ma...gewanted=print

excerpt:
In some ways, this is a nonevent. European factories close; Chinese ones open. Consumers like their commodities cheap, in the case of aspirin as with everything else. China now produces about two-thirds of all aspirin and is poised to become the world’s sole global supplier in the not-too-distant future. But are the Chinese factories safe? Who knows? The U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the European Medicines Agency and other competent government regulators rarely, if ever, inspect them. (By contrast, Rhodia’s plant was last inspected by the F.D.A. in July and is routinely inspected by one country or another.) Companies that import Chinese pharmaceutical ingredients, including aspirin, are required to test the supplies before using them, and some send private inspectors to China to ensure that suppliers use adequate controls. No pharmaceutical maker wants its name to become synonymous with disaster, and the vast majority of drugs that are consumed in the United States are safe. But some industry executives told me that price sensitivity in the generics industry makes it more difficult to fully vet their low-cost suppliers.

China Pharmaceutical Trade a Prescription for Disaster - HUMAN EVENTS

excerpt:
One of China's largest pharmaceutical companies that export to the United States, Shanghai Hualian, has just been exposed to have marketed contaminated leukemia drugs that paralyzed or otherwise harmed 200 Chinese cancer patients. This is the latest in a string of tainted medicines. Manufacturers who have such little regard for the safety of their own countrymen are unlikely to care about the safety of U.S. patients

And another(April 2009)
China's pharmaceutical market has experienced significant growth in recent years, fueled by increasing wealth among its own population[1] as well as accelerating global demand for cheap, effective medicines to treat ailments ranging from high cholesterol to HIV/AIDS.[2] Along with India, China supplies more than 40 percent of the active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) used to make U.S. pharmaceuticals. The current financial crisis, and the limited resources and tighter budgets it has engendered, may accelerate the trend. Yet, China is dogged by a history of poor-quality pharmaceuticals that have killed hundreds and sickened thousands of its own citizens and people across the globe. The government has begun to tighten its laws, but enforcement remains weak, and official obfuscation is rampant. While any retaliatory protectionist measures in the United States would be counterproductive, China and its international partners would gain from improving the frequency and technical sophistication of inspections, the prosecution of perpetrators, and the culture of self-policing within China's pharmaceutical industry.

Key points in this Outlook:

*
China is a major hub for the world's pharmaceutical industry, making deadly lapses in quality a concern everywhere, including the United States.
* Chinese government inattention fosters drug counterfeiting.
* However, China's drug regulator is ramping up quality standards and enforcement.
* International partnerships in both the public and private sector are helping to improve Chinese drug quality standards.

As for food, if you want to avoid contamination then eat most foods in their natural state, avoid man made convenience foods. The more ingredients it has the riskier it is. The food manufacture can import one or many ingredients from China or where ever and still claim it was manufactured in the U.S. They don't have to tell you where the ingredients came from. Just like the dog food scare a while back...... ....Scary isn't it??

05-26-2009, 04:18 PM	#15
jp4m2 Love my Boys Donating Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: w/ my boys Posts: 5,056	I was shocked when I read this....I think we are all under some false thinking that "someone " is looking out for our safety and welfare and that is just not so...... Bill Would Give FDA Resources for Inspections - Pharmaceutical Technology excerpt: “In China, the world's largest producer of active pharmaceutical ingredients, and where we have seen increasing reports of contaminated products, only 11 inspections were conducted during FY 2007,” Grassley said in his statement. “During the same year, FDA conducted 14 inspections in Switzerland, 18 in Germany, and 24 in France—all countries with advanced regulatory infrastructures,” he added. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/02/ma...gewanted=print excerpt: In some ways, this is a nonevent. European factories close; Chinese ones open. Consumers like their commodities cheap, in the case of aspirin as with everything else. China now produces about two-thirds of all aspirin and is poised to become the world’s sole global supplier in the not-too-distant future. But are the Chinese factories safe? Who knows? The U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the European Medicines Agency and other competent government regulators rarely, if ever, inspect them. (By contrast, Rhodia’s plant was last inspected by the F.D.A. in July and is routinely inspected by one country or another.) Companies that import Chinese pharmaceutical ingredients, including aspirin, are required to test the supplies before using them, and some send private inspectors to China to ensure that suppliers use adequate controls. No pharmaceutical maker wants its name to become synonymous with disaster, and the vast majority of drugs that are consumed in the United States are safe. But some industry executives told me that price sensitivity in the generics industry makes it more difficult to fully vet their low-cost suppliers. China Pharmaceutical Trade a Prescription for Disaster - HUMAN EVENTS excerpt: One of China's largest pharmaceutical companies that export to the United States, Shanghai Hualian, has just been exposed to have marketed contaminated leukemia drugs that paralyzed or otherwise harmed 200 Chinese cancer patients. This is the latest in a string of tainted medicines. Manufacturers who have such little regard for the safety of their own countrymen are unlikely to care about the safety of U.S. patients And another(April 2009) China's pharmaceutical market has experienced significant growth in recent years, fueled by increasing wealth among its own population[1] as well as accelerating global demand for cheap, effective medicines to treat ailments ranging from high cholesterol to HIV/AIDS.[2] Along with India, China supplies more than 40 percent of the active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) used to make U.S. pharmaceuticals. The current financial crisis, and the limited resources and tighter budgets it has engendered, may accelerate the trend. Yet, China is dogged by a history of poor-quality pharmaceuticals that have killed hundreds and sickened thousands of its own citizens and people across the globe. The government has begun to tighten its laws, but enforcement remains weak, and official obfuscation is rampant. While any retaliatory protectionist measures in the United States would be counterproductive, China and its international partners would gain from improving the frequency and technical sophistication of inspections, the prosecution of perpetrators, and the culture of self-policing within China's pharmaceutical industry. Key points in this Outlook: * China is a major hub for the world's pharmaceutical industry, making deadly lapses in quality a concern everywhere, including the United States. * Chinese government inattention fosters drug counterfeiting. * However, China's drug regulator is ramping up quality standards and enforcement. * International partnerships in both the public and private sector are helping to improve Chinese drug quality standards. As for food, if you want to avoid contamination then eat most foods in their natural state, avoid man made convenience foods. The more ingredients it has the riskier it is. The food manufacture can import one or many ingredients from China or where ever and still claim it was manufactured in the U.S. They don't have to tell you where the ingredients came from. Just like the dog food scare a while back...... ....Scary isn't it?? __________________ B.J.mom to : Jake J.J. Jack & Joey, momma misses you..... The joy found in the companionship of a pet is a blessing not given to everyone. The two most powerful words when we’re in struggle: me too.. Last edited by jp4m2; 05-26-2009 at 04:21 PM.