Ministry: New Dairy Products Standards Meet with International Standards

China will soon put into effect 66 new national safety standards for dairy products that are completely consistent with international standards, said Chen Rui, a senior official from the Ministry of Health, at a press conference on July 13.

All related departments led by the Ministry of Health began to refine the previous more than 160 dairy products safety standards into 66 new standards starting in late 2008.

The Ministry of Health will now accelerate the smooth integration of the new food safety standards and establish a national food safety standard system.

Chen also said at the press conference that residents in most regions of China, including coastal areas, all have safe levels of iodine nutrition, except for areas with a high iodine concentration in the drinking water.

In recent years, scholars and the public have paid more attention to the scientific salt iodization strategy in China as well as to the possible excessive intake of iodine by residents in some coastal areas. Chen said the risk assessment from the expert committee for national food safety risks shows that the universal salt iodization did not cause excessive iodine intake for residents, and the risk of iodine deficiency for Chinese residents is greater than that of iodine excess. Therefore, it is necessary for residents in most parts of China including coastal areas to continue the salt iodization strate