05/31/07 French Threat & China Hollars Back

French Threat & China Hollars Back plus Food Forethought. I'm Greg Martin with today's Northwest Report. The Chinese government wants the U.S. to take some responsibility for the recent food-safety breach that forced a massive pet-food recall and subsequent farm-animal quarantines. Saying U.S. food companies need to be more careful in their purchasing and not just buy at the cheapest price. The issue stemmed from two Chinese export companies that used wheat gluten to bolster the apparent protein content of pet food and also increase their costs. Yesterday two companies that manufacture fish and livestock food announced recalls. FDA's Dr. David Acheson. ACHESON: This came to our attention because Uniscope brought it to our attention. As you remember from previous melamine calls, one of the activities we have been undertaking is to raise awareness amongst manufacturers about the need to be wary of suppliers, cognizant of suppliers, knowing what they are putting into their products. Uniscope used a product that they basically thought could potentially contain melamine, it was a feed product. They decided to test it themselves through a private lab and found it to be present. They then informed us of that situation. Trade talks have been moving along at a snail's pace ever since the suspension of the Doha Round last summer and now France has threatened to veto any agreement that doesn't satisfy its requirements on agriculture. The announcement comes from President Nicolas Sarkozy less than two weeks after taking office. President Bush wants to send a deal to Congress before his term of office ends. Now with today's Food Forethought, here's Susan Allen. In the eco-sensitive carbon neutral climate we all are attempting to navigate a new movement is afoot with some big players. Both Wal-Mart and the Coca-cola Company have vowed to become plastic neutral, meaning they will utilize less packaging and diligently urge their venders to do the same. In fact Coca-cola redesigned their bottle to use considerably less plastic but it has backfired a bit as the company now must convince wary consumers that though lighter, the bottles contain the same volume. Estee Lauder should also be applauded for the millions the company has invested with aluminum smelters to design recyclable makeup tops and tubes. Yet the majority of American companies fail to put planet before profit and many wouldn't consider sacrificing hard earned brand image. Then there are those that go to opposite extreme like Redux Beverages that use offensive advertising and packaging to grain product attention. As in the case of the recently banned Cocaine Energy drink that in this eco-sensitive era even sports a pop-top of sorts. Thanks Susan. That's today's Northwest Report. I'm Greg Martin on the Northwest Ag Information Network.