Here, There And Everywhere
Let's face it, there's scarcely a product or a foodstuff that China hasn't had a hand in producing, available on the cheap just about everywhere in the world, especially the Western world. For consumers outside China the availability of less expensive consumer goods has been an end to a means of ownership. True, there's more than a whiff of suspicion inherent in Chinese-made goods, an unenviable lack of trust due to sometimes shoddy workmanship that once was attached to post WWII Japan.Now, and for decades, Japanese-produced goods have been synonymous in consumers' minds with quality goods. Where once Switzerland and Germany produced exquisite mechanical products and optical lenses, Japanese-produced goods managed to equal their quality, at much-reduced prices. In the process, putting the older manufacturers on their toes, then flat on their backs. Japanese demand quality goods themselves, and they take pride in their ability to produce quality, in their inspection process to ensure that factory to store-shelf equals confidence.
China's working on it. Where once beautifully designed furniture of quality workmanship came out of places like Grand Rapids Falls, Michigan and elsewhere in the United States, such furniture is now manufactured, where else? in China. The largest furniture company in the United States has an immense inventory of excellently-produced furniture and it's manufactured in China. Order a dining room or bedroom suite and it'll take a month, month-and-a-half for processing.
Processing? Well that means the order goes in, and the work is done in China, then shipped out to your home in North America. At a price, including shipping costs, a mere fraction of what it would take to produce something similar in a North American location. China has a wealth of skilled workers; her most notable and important resource. Jade from British Columbia is shipped to China to be worked into precise little figures of animals, shipped back to B.C. then sold in tourist places like Cache Creek, B.C. as mementos.
Go into any supermarket in North America looking for garlic bulbs and what do you find? Garlic from China. All right, we've got to draw the line somewhere; invariably the bulbs are dried out and sprouted as well, likely completely lacking in nutritional value. But price? A half-dozen netted bulbs for a mere $1. Thank heavens we still have the option of visiting farms nearby city centres to purchase three bulbs of fresh garlic for a pittance of $3.50, nutritional value intact.
Even Japan now has some of its electronic products made in China, with Japanese logos on them, as interested as any other country in lowering production costs to achieve a more favourable outcome at the cash register. We get computer parts and equipment, radios, television, cameras, furniture, toys, games, clothing, telephones, footwear, office machines, lamps, sound recorders, handbags, suitcases, sweaters, motor vehicle parts and accessories - for a partial inventory - from China.
Chances are when you visit your local supermarket and decide to buy packaged flash-frozen fish it comes from China. We read some labels and some country-of-origin identification, but not always. Who knew we import confectionery sugar from China? Or pasta? When I buy salmon fillets and the package reads "Wild Pacific Salmon" that makes me think I've got a really good and nutritiously-tasty product. I often assume I'm buying B.C. salmon. And I'm wrong. But boy, it's great eating hot off the barbecue.
Isn't there always a downside? Health Canada figures indicate that Chinese-made consumer goods have been subject to more safety recalls than those from any other country. On the other hand, it's doubtful that we import as many products from other countries as we do from China. With the possible exception of the United States, and we've had our problems there, as well, with tainted tomato juice, spinach and any number of other perishables which poor handling practises can easily contaminate.
Yet toys, household goods like toothpaste and food ingredients; baby products and food for pets have made headlines as they've been found to be sub-par and sometimes downright dangerous to human and pet health, due to lax inspections and poor quality control at their place of origin. But - 60% of goods exported from China globally owe their origin to western-owned and -operated manufacturers. Produced by Chinese owned factories, but contracted for by western companies.
If there are production standards that must be met, they must first be explicitly ordered to be met. Loss of custom is always a nice cudgel to ensure that everyone is singing from the same hymnal. Anyone who thinks that China is alone responsible for the contretemps in ill-produced goods isn't thinking straight. It's to China's advantage to produce well received and fundamentally trusted goods. It's a blot on her reputation and her pride when events prove otherwise.
And let's face it, we've become rather interdependent. If consumers became sufficiently annoyed, and perhaps even fearful of products coming out of China that they loudly and belligerently demanded that all goods currently stemming from that source be replaced by goods produced elsewhere where they feel they would have greater confidence in its quality things would really be stood on their heads. Where's it all to come from? China's pre-eminence in production has put so many competitors out of business, we'd be hard put to find sources.
Going through store shelves to pull Chinese-produced goods would soon empty those same shelves. Governments whose manufacturers make production deals with their Chinese producers have to put pressure where it's due; not only on China, but the responsible importers as well. And if we're really serious about health and safety and security of supply we should look inward, and support local producers and manufacturers, where feasible.
Some of whose parts would undoubtedly also come from China.
Fact is, in Canada the government doesn't require additives to food products to be included on labels. A "Made in Canada" label need only represent 51% of Canadian-produced goods to qualify.
Labels: Environment, Political Realities, That's Life
posted by Pieface @ Sunday, August 19, 2007
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