China's top legislator highlights food safety

BEIJING, April 20 -- China's top legislator Zhang Dejiang has urged government organs and the food industry to fully enforce and abide by the country's food safety law.

Zhang made the remarks during a four-day law enforcement inspection tour in central China's Hubei province on food safety law which ended Wednesday.

The top legislator called for stepped up regulations on the use of pesticides and fertilizers and urged food-related enterprises to provide trust-worthy products for "safety is the lifeline of food companies," he said.

Food safety watchdogs, meanwhile, must further improve the timeliness and accuracy in food product inspections, Zhang said.

He stressed that the new food safety law must be fully implemented, and a strict, efficient governance system for food safety should be established.

China adopted a major revision to the food safety law in April 2015 that saw articles increase from 105 to 154, imposing heavier civil, administrative and criminal penalties for offenders and their supervisors. It came into effect on Oct. 1.