Shanghai consumer flies to Nestle for the right to know

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Thursday, December 18, 2003

Shanghai consumer flies to Nestle for the right to know

Ms. Zhu went to the world-renowned Nestle Company headquartered in Switzerland and handed in her open letter protesting against the unlabeled transgenic food Nestle sold in China. She expressed the hope that Nestle could give equal treatment to consumers in China as to those in Europe.

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Ms. Zhu Yanling from Shanghai, who, as a Chinese consumer, flew to Zurich where she had an interview with reporters in Switzerland. On December 15, Ms. Zhu went to the world-renowned Nestle Company headquartered in Switzerland and handed in her open letter protesting against the unlabeled transgenic food Nestle sold in China. She expressed the hope that Nestle could give equal treatment to consumers in China as to those in Europe.

Ms. Zhu said that she once visited the headquarters of Nestle during her studies in Switzerland and was very much impressed by the strict management and excellent technology there. She has been a buyer of Nestle baby series products for her son for three years. Early this year, she accidentally learned from the Internet that genetically modified ingredients were detected in Nestle products sold in China. When she checked the package of the Nestle Qiaobanban she bought in March this year, she found no information about genetically modified ingredient was given. However, genetically modified ingredients did exist in the product as identified by an institution concerned.

Ms. Zhu said that she felt cheated. She knew that Nestle promised in Europe not to use genetically modified ingredients in food and even if there are some, it would be clearly indicated. She always believes that if no indication is given in the product, then Nestle should contain no genetically modified ingredients.

In April this year, Ms. Zhu sued Nestle Company in Switzerland, Shanghai Nestle Co., Ltd., and the Shanghai Lianjia Supermarket that sold the product. She asked to return the package of food she had bought and to have a new package free of charge as compensation, and demanded Nestle Company of clear indication that the product contains genetically modified ingredients. This is the first case occurred in China, a case in which a producer was sued by a consumer for lack of indicating that the product was transgenic food.

Sources say that the case, after repeated exchanges of evidence, is waiting for the opening of a court session.

During half a year's lawsuit, an idea of revisiting the headquarters of Nestle Company popped up in Ms. Zhu's mind. She thought that Nestle Company adopted "dual standards" for consumers in Asia and those in Europe.

In a letter she drafted which was to be delivered to the personage in charge at the headquarters of Nestle Company, Ms. Zhu said that in accusing Nestle, she had only a minor aim (return the package she bought and have a new package free of charge as compensation, which combined totaling only 13.6 yuan). Her intention is to make it clear that Chinese consumers have the right to know and the right to choose the kind of product they buy home.

Ms. Zhu raised two clear-cut demands to Nestle Company: First, Nestle should, as in European countries, avoid using genetically modified materials in the products sold to China. Second, if the product does contain genetically modified ingredients, it should be clearly indicated, as showing respect for Chinese consumers' right to know and right to choose.

It is reported that in recent years, foreign transgenic foods have poured into China and this has aroused the attention of the Chinese government and consumers. Currently, there is still no final conclusion about the safety of transgenic food in the world. Although the transgenic foods put for sales on the market proved to have no harm to people's health after going through strict inspection, it has been a common international practice of attaching labels to transgenic foods.

The Bio-safety Protocol, jointly signed by 113 countries including China in Canada in January 2001, stipulates that consumers have the right to know about transgenic food that should be clearly indicated when transferred across boundaries. Consumers International also pointed out that governments of all countries should demand producers have explicit labels on transgenic food. And Consumers International set transgenic food as the theme of the World Consumer Right Day in 2003.

The Chinese government officially practiced the label system for agricultural transgenic organisms from March 20, 2002. Through repeated inspections made by government institutions, products, such as soybean salad oil presently on sales in the domestic market, have been openly labeled, so as to let consumers know the products and have their own choice.

It is learned that Nestle Company in China has not made it clear whether or not its products contain genetically modified ingredients, after the sample products were found containing such ingredients through a sampled survey conducted one year ago in China.

The above article, relayed from China Youth Daily December 16, was translated by PD Online staff member Gao Lanrong.

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