Private sector can deal with Chinese product safety problems
The list of unsafe and tainted Chinese prodcuts is long and worrisome; Congress is considering protectionist measures in response; WSJ says private sector can deal with the problem
Growing fears about lax safety standrads of Chinese products have given rise to protectionist sentiments in Congress. The argumes some lawmakers offer is that trade barriers are the only way to protect Americans from tainted Chinese products. The Wall Street Journal says that individual companies are already waking up to the need to take quality control into their own hands. “The result will be safer products that are still cheaper than the alternative. If, that is, protectionists don’t get in the way,” the newspaper’s editorialist writes.
Since the melamine-laced pet food scandal hit in March, American consumers have witnessed one Chinese safety problem after another (hand on to your seat): Among others, there have been lead-tainted toys, antifreeze-tainted counterfeit tubes of toothpaste, antibiotic-tainted fish, salmonella-tainted snack foods, and tread-separating tires. This is but the short list, and this is nothing compared to what Chinese consumers have faced. Last month brought exposure of fake blood proteins and fungus-tainted baby diapers; this month has brought word of explosion-prone counterfeit mobile phone batteries.
All of which has prompted calls for protectionism. In response to concerns about fish safety, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently required testing of all fish imports from China, a regulatory burden so onerous it amounts to a ban. Senator Charles Schumer (D-New York) has called for creation of an “import czar” to “focus on the rising tide of Chinese goods coming in to the U.S.” Other members of Congress are taking the opportunity to refight the 2000 battle over China’s World Trade Organization accession.
These sentiments in Congress notwithstanding, the WSJ insists:
…t’s important to remember that the private sector can play a critical role here. The market is providing greater incentives than ever for businesses to do so. Consumers don’t need to face a choice between “Made in the U.S.A.” high prices and cheap-but-dangerous Chinese goods. Provided, that is, that Congressional protectionists don’t get in the way.
