Leavitt preaches import safety at AAEI conference

Leavitt preaches import safety at AAEI conference Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt on Monday brought his message of pushing U.S. product safety standards and monitoring overseas for imported products to the American Association of Exporters and Importers annual conference in New York.
   Leavitt, who headed the Bush administration’s inter-agency working group on import safety that developed recommendations to improve safety compliance for importers and their overseas suppliers, stressed the importance of using third-party accreditation of foreign suppliers to ensure U.S. standards are being met. Efforts to increase inspections of inbound goods would be futile considering the more than $2 trillion worth of goods imported into the United States last year, he said.
   Leavitt also envisioned a day when an inspection done by another foreign agency could be certified if they follow our standards.” In a global economy it doesn’t make sense for inspectors from each buyer country to travel around the world inspecting facilities if governments and industry can agree on common minimum standards and share the findings of safety reviews. Companies that have develop quality assurance procedures can give regulators the confidence to train less scrutiny on them to focus on flagrant violators, he said.
   In December, the United States reached agreements with China to strengthen the safety of food, feed, drugs and medical device exports. Under the cooperative framework, the United States will help the Chinese government improve the capacity of its regulatory process through training and education. Leavitt, in language similar to that used in the customs security arena regarding mutual recognition of trusted shippers, said at some point it is possible the United States could accept the results of inspections conducted by the Chinese government.
   Repeating updates given in a speech to a gathering of Target Corp.’s worldwide vendors in May, Leavitt said the United States is working with China’s State Food and Drug Administration to register all companies in China manufacturing and exporting designated products. Work is also underway with China’s General Administration for Quality Supervision, Inspection, and Quarantine, on a registration-certification program for aquaculture and low-acid canned foods.
   Leavitt said he expected diplomatic permission and credentialing to be completed soon that will allow the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to establish an office in China to help monitor safety of exports to the United States.
   The FDA intends to open similar offices in India, and Leavitt said he would soon go to Central America to hold a summit among nations in that region who sell products to the United States.
   Leavitt said 12 trade associations will sponsor a product safety summit in Washington on July 9 that will bring together leaders from the retailing, food, medical products, toy and other industries.
   The best form of regulation is conditions imposed by buyers because producers react more quickly to consumer and customer demands for quality than to government mandates, he said. Industries are already responding to consumer concerns by developing tougher voluntary standards and certification processes to assure retailers their products are trustworthy and retailers looking for certified companies when making purchases.
   Leavitt appearance also caused a stir when a group of 10 protestors shouted at Leavitt in the hallway of the Hilton New York to release federal funds for health ailments of non-emergency responders affected by exposure to toxins from the 9/11 World Trade Tower collapse in New York.
   Conference organizers quickly escorted the protestors out of the building. ' Eric Kulisch