PRINTER'S NO. 2138
No. 355 Session of 2007
INTRODUCED BY JOSEPHS, BEYER, BLACKWELL, CALTAGIRONE, CARROLL, CASORIO, CLYMER, COHEN, CONKLIN, DALLY, DeLUCA, DiGIROLAMO, FABRIZIO, FREEMAN, GALLOWAY, GOODMAN, GRUCELA, HANNA, HARHAI, HARKINS, HERSHEY, JAMES, KESSLER, KIRKLAND, KORTZ, KULA, LONGIETTI, MANN, MANTZ, MARSHALL, McGEEHAN, McILVAINE SMITH, MENSCH, MURT, MYERS, NICKOL, PALLONE, PETRI, READSHAW, ROEBUCK, SAINATO, SEIP, SIPTROTH, STABACK, SURRA, SWANGER, THOMAS, WAGNER, WATERS AND YOUNGBLOOD, JUNE 28, 2007
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON AGRICULTURE AND RURAL AFFAIRS, JUNE 28, 2007
A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 1 Urging review of import-export control systems for food and drug 2 products sourced from China. 3 WHEREAS, The events of September 11, 2001, have highlighted 4 the need to enhance the security of the United States, including 5 the food supply; and 6 WHEREAS, Intentional misconduct by Chinese business owners 7 and Chinese governmental officials, not terrorism, has caused 8 recent food safety concerns; and 9 WHEREAS, Thousands of dogs and cats became sick or died when 10 melamine, a banned substance, was found in wheat proteins 11 sourced from China which made their way into some pet foods; and 12 WHEREAS, The scare widened in the United States when melamine 13 was found to have entered the human food chain after tainted pet 14 food scrap was used as a feed supplement at a number of hog
1 farms and chicken farms; and 2 WHEREAS, The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) 3 has banned shipments of toothpaste from China containing 4 dangerous levels of an industrial chemical known as diethylene 5 glycol (DEG), a poison used in antifreeze and as a solvent; and 6 WHEREAS, Chinese counterfeiters have profitably substituted 7 DEG for its more expensive chemical cousin, glycerin--a safe 8 additive commonly found in food, drugs and household products-- 9 to thicken and sweeten toothpaste; and 10 WHEREAS, DEG was blamed for the deaths of at least 51 people 11 in Panama in 2006 after it was mixed into cough syrup, another 12 case involving China; and 13 WHEREAS, The FDA has advised consumers to discard all 14 toothpaste made in China and is urging retailers to pull 15 Chinese-made toothpaste from their shelves; and 16 WHEREAS, The United States is the seventh country to find 17 tainted Chinese toothpaste within its borders: Panama, 18 Australia, the Dominican Republic, Costa Rica, Honduras and 19 Nicaragua have also found tainted toothpaste; and 20 WHEREAS, The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) 21 has recently seized more than 1,000 shipments of tainted Chinese 22 dietary supplements, toxic cosmetics and counterfeit medicines; 23 and 24 WHEREAS, Imported fruits, bean curd, teas and candy have been 25 seized upon entry into the United States under heightened FDA 26 restrictions; and 27 WHEREAS, Chinese pharmaceutical companies make 70% of the 28 world's penicillin, 50% of the aspirin and 35% of the 29 acetominophen as well as the bulk of vitamins A, B12, C and E; 30 and 20070H0355R2138 - 2 -
1 WHEREAS, China dominates the world market in the production 2 of antibiotics, analgesics, enzymes and primary amino acids and 3 has captured 90% of the United States market for vitamin C; and 4 WHEREAS, Many United States food processors are continuing to 5 boycott Chinese exports over fears regarding product safety; and 6 WHEREAS, United States citizens and others attending the 7 Olympic Games in Beijing in 2008 may be exposed to dangerous or 8 even lethal levels of contaminants in food, body care products, 9 cosmetics, medications and other products; therefore be it 10 RESOLVED (the Senate concurring), That the General Assembly 11 of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania urge the USDA, FDA and other 12 oversight agencies to review safety protocols on food, medicines 13 and other potentially harmful products imported from China with 14 the goal of tightening regulations for entry into the United 15 States; and be it further 16 RESOLVED, That the General Assembly encourage consumers to 17 use extreme caution when consuming or ingesting food, medicines 18 and other products known to have originated in China; and be it 19 further 20 RESOLVED, That copies of this resolution be transmitted to 21 the President of the United States, to the USDA, to the FDA, to 22 the United States Department of Health and Human Services, to 23 the United States Department of Homeland Security and to each 24 member of Congress from Pennsylvania. F8L82BIL/20070H0355R2138 - 3 -