% v& M# X5 c! r0 y由中国杭州中策橡胶有限公司(Hangzhou Zhongce Rubber)制造的这些轮胎缺少一层帮助加固轮胎、防止胎面分离的橡胶层——2000年，正是这个问题导致美国大规模召回凡世通轮胎(Firestone)。记者昨日未能联系到杭州中策的管理人员置评。 7 |( h6 y" }& w5 X |. q: z& l' [- i, V3 K) @
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By Geoff Dyer in Shanghai 6 ?% w3 K3 e% R8 NWednesday, June 27, 2007 7 u! z6 \5 J4 s- _4 i) X4 @4 U! k# }7 Q( E. F/ L
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BEIJING'S SEIZURE OF US FOOD SEEN AS RETALIATION# f9 V. c1 u# B1 `, ^- T+ E
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China has impounded two shipments of food from the US on the grounds that the produce is unsafe and warned that procedures for monitoring American food imports should be tightened.; R5 y+ j O) r g7 J5 b
0 L/ V8 f/ Q5 U SGovernment inspectors seized separate shipments of orange pulp and apricots from the US because they contained excessive bacteria and mould, China's food safety inspectorate said yesterday on its website.0 [( d) e4 A- t: ?, g
4 h0 i; \3 q2 ]Coming on the back of a series of scandals in the US over the quality of imported goods from China, the announcement will be considered by many importers as a form of retaliation by the Chinese authorities. : Z+ T2 N( ` g* `4 o5 U% M0 v, H( M8 j4 u8 J4 I# r
The statement comes one day after regulators in the US announced a recall of up to 450,000 tyres manufactured by a Chinese company because of a potentially dangerous safety problem.( Z2 z' X5 l: \4 | |
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China's General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine said it had impounded the orange pulp in the eastern province of Shandong and the apricots were seized in Shenzhen. ; q* p/ }6 ^% c* |' o ' @; J1 q& ^& x; u Q9 xThe shipments contained “excessive bacteria, mould and sulphur dioxide”, the agency said, but gave no details about when they were impounded or how big the shipments were. % P4 w. O$ S& O; K' I 1 o# p# g1 e4 Y5 BThe agency's statement said local departments had been advised to “strengthen quarantine and inspections on food imports from America”. + V3 k l! b8 |. ^8 i % b& o3 P# N D$ rAn executive at a European trading company based in Shanghai said: “We cannot say anything for sure without seeing details about the shipments, but it certainly looks like a way of deflecting some of the attention away from China and its own quality problems.” 9 b. G7 [$ g; a" }9 @ ! M. |, c8 H: k* ?. C9 o" n" d7 g+ [The US government's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced on Monday the recall of tyres sold by Foreign Tire Sales, a New Jersey distributor, which are used in vans, sports utility vehicles and pick-up trucks. / e% v: e. E- B9 m0 D, G ; ~: `( F9 L! i2 X5 c3 W8 b4 ]The tyres, made by a Chinese company called Hangzhou Zhongce Rubber, lacked a gum strip that helps strengthen the tyre and prevent tread separation – the problem that caused a massive recall of Firestone tyres in the US in 2000. Officials at Hangzhou Zhongce could not be reached for comment yesterday.) f, D! u; e. ~8 e
: C1 }$ t. z; z 4 Q8 ?0 e3 N0 P; W$ g" s4 _ / Q6 W) b2 g2 Q7 t5 I6 a8 [Financial Times
