12 Million Tons of Chinese Rice Contaminated

[RandySF]

Ugh. Hong Kong's English daily South China Morning Post has a distinctly unsavory dispatch from the Chinese media this morning: Government scientists have released research that millions of acres of Chinese agricultural land and over 12 million tons of Chinese grain are contaminated by toxic metal pollution, according to this week's edition of the China Economic Weekly, a state-run magazine.

Last week, a separate article reported that 10% of Chinese rice contained excess cadmium, a heavy metal known to cause cancer.

Beijing quickly responded to last week's news by announcing it was re-focusing its efforts to reign in heavy metal pollution over the weekend, identifying 4500 operations across the nation, including chemical manufacturers, battery manufacturers and mines, to be put under stricter controls. Today's SCMP article says the farmland pollution is particularly bad in China's southwestern Yunnan, Guangdong and Guangxi provinces.




http://ecocentric.blogs.time.com/2011/02/23/heavy-metal-millions-of-tons-of-chinese-rice-contaminated/

[Poll_Blind]

1. Wonder how much of that's going to make its way over here, priced to move.

PB

[Exultant Democracy]

6. More then we will ever find out?

Then again I personally think that at least some governmental regulators have been complicit in covering up a low level mad cow epidemic for the last 15-30 years.

[pampango]

14. "China exports relatively little rice..." It's their staple food as in most Asian countries.

Since they consume almost all of the rice they produce, the health consequences in China will be acute. "The domestic health ramifications of this information will take even longer to determine."

It is interesting that this news was published in "this week's edition of the China Economic Weekly, a state-run magazine." Does that mean that the government wanted this information to get out or that it got out anyway?
-----------------------
"Much of the toxic rice is consumed by farm families who can’t afford the “clean” rice sold in markets. But some rice laced with heavy metals also slips through safety checks and is sold on the general market, experts say, sometimes to consumers in China’s wealthiest cities."

http://chinadigitaltimes.net/2011/02/heavy-metals-tainting-chinas-rice-bowls/

[Haole Girl]

2. Well, d'uh. You fuck with the environment, it will fuck you too. nt

[AlabamaLibrul]

3. That's a hell of a lot of rice n/t

[JDPriestly]

4. What is that you said about too many environmental regulations, Republicans?

[moondust]

5. 60 minutes did a piece on toxic electronic dumps in China.

http://tinyurl.com/ToxicDumps

It's gross.

[travelingtypist]

7. They take people behind buildings and shoot them for this kind of shit.

Yikes.

[nilram]

8. ooh, I've got to find some "Lundburg" brand rice. California produced.

Buy American.

[Le Taz Hot]

9. Just one more reason to buy California rice.

Here's a list of California rice suppliers:

http://www.calrice.org/Cuisine/Foodservice/Suppliers+and+Brands.htm

[dmr]

10. Thank you. n/t

[deacon]

11. Hmmm. Make consumer protection laws should be considered, those things the GOP defunds. n/t

[SpiralHawk]

12. wow - global food prices already spiraling up up up

12 million freaking tons - fall prey to Chinese who have obviously embraced Republicon Family Environmental Values.

Ptooooey.

[no_hypocrisy]

13. Add to that problem fake, plastic kernels of rice produced by China.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=103x588084

[thereismore]

15. Fuck. Not surprising, really, considering that humans shit where they eat. nt