Daily Lessons from Life 18 February 2011 - China targets leather protein in new food concern

"China targets leather protein in new food concern - Fri, Feb 18, 2011 AFP

BEIJING, Feb 18, 2011 (AFP) - China pledged Friday to halt use of leather protein in food production, saying the potentially harmful substance was being added to some products in the country's latest concern over safety.

Authorities will "harshly crack down upon and punish companies that illegally process or produce milk using leather protein," the country's product quality watchdog said in a statement posted on its website.

Leather protein is derived from scraps of animal skin. It is potentially harmful to humans if dangerous chemicals such as sulphuric acid are used in the extraction process, according to previous Chinese media reports.

Its use as an additive in animal feed is allowed but the government in February 2009 banned the adding of leather protein to food consumed by humans, said the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine.

However, unscrupulous food producers have been found adding it to dairy products to make them appear to have higher amounts of protein, the quality watchdog said.

Neither the government statement nor Chinese media reports said use of the substance was widespread."

When will this even end for China? People knowingly adding potential harmful materials into their products to cheat the quality standard set by the nation's authority just to make a few more bucks seem to be heartless and without conscience!

Lessons for me are:

1. if there is profit to be made, someone will go insane and 'kill' for it!;

2. there is NO way to eradicate or to prevent this 100% as long as someone do not have the right mindset, value and attitude towards: integrity is more important than money! To check 100% of all products for excessive or illegal amount of harmful materials will be too costly. So, the ultimate check has to be relied on Individual Responsibility and Ethics!;

3. while we cannot policed all unscrupulous and cold-blooded money worshipping people from doing their evil acts, we can, whenever we catch some of them, made them pay a very very heavy price for it - death sentence - a pratice probably creates a big hue and cry from liberals! Well. When you tempered with innocent lives, you must know you have to pay for it! Simple as that. Not being uncivilized or brutal. Just a matter of being responsible!

May Chinese people realised that 'poisoning each others to get a bit more money is stupid and evil and unforgivable'. So, offenders beware! No mercy expected!!