False labeling of meat is betrayal of consumers and producers -- Akahata editorial, March 4 (excerpts)

Starzen, a major meat packer, is the second after Snow Brand Food to be accused of falsely labeling meat.

The deliberate mislabeling by Starzen was on a large scale because the company acknowledged that the practice continued for at least several years, with 40 percent of pork shipping was under false labels.

Lack of government control

The company gained at least 10 million yen in illegal profits from falsely labeling its meat as a prestige product.

The mislabeling by Snow Brand Food has brought to light the defects of the present food inspection system. The administrative authorities didn't intervene when the company falsely labeled its beef by falsely showing the place of origin and the period before expiration.

It is necessary to call the government into question for the responsibility of condoning such mislabeling to take place on such a large scale.

The availability of correct information about food may decide the life or death of some people for medical reasons.

To put an end to the ongoing popular mistrust of food labeling, it is essential to establish a system under which correct food labeling is obligatory to guarantee the consumer right to know and choose.

Safe food must come first

The Food Sanitation Law stipulates standards for designation and prohibits false designation, but these regulations are concerned only with public sanitation and therefore do not guarantee the right of consumers to choose based on correct information. There is an urgent need to drastically revise the law so that the rights of consumers to know and choose be guaranteed.

The meat mislabeling incidents question whether food administration be changed from being a guardian of company profits into one which protects the health and safety of consumers as top priority. (end)