I came across this which I believe may be of benefit SBN at some...

I came across this which I believe may be of benefit SBN at some future date. It came froma Spanish/Chinese webpage

http://translate.google.com.au/translate?u=http%3A%2F%2Fspanish.peopledaily.com.cn%2F31620%2F6537007.html&sl=es&tl=en&hl=en&ie=UTF-8

Food regulatory agency of the U.S. office opens in Beijing
The Food and Drug Administration of USA (FDA, initials in Spanish) on Wednesday established its first foreign office in Beijing, aiming to better control the American food imported into the country.

Mainly, the office will be responsible for creating a system of inspection of the safety of food and medicine in China, said Mike Leavitt, secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services USA.

Leavitt arrived in Beijing this week next to the FDA commissioner, Andrew von Eschenbach, to attend two workshops with their Chinese counterparts, which discussed the issue of food security.

According to Leavitt, the FDA also will open offices in Guangdong and Shanghai later this week, and has designated eight inspectors and technical experts in food, medicine and medical appliances to work in the three offices of the Asian country.

The specialists will inspect the local facilities, will instruct on the quality standards of U.S. and improve the regulatory systems in China through cooperation with their Chinese counterparts, said Christopher J. Hickey, director de la oficina de la FDA en Beijing. Hickey, director of the FDA office in Beijing.

"The establishment of the delegation will promote and deepen further the cooperation between China and U.S. in the field of regulation of food and medicine," said Shao Mingli, in charge of the State Administration for Food and Drug Administration of China, at the opening ceremony .

The two nations signed an agreement on the safety of medicines and medical appliances in December 2007, which stipulates regular meetings between senior officials of both countries, communication on legislation, information exchanges and technical cooperation. (Xinhua)