On the morning of June 28, 2010, Luohu District People's Court of Shenzhen City. Greenpeace, the international environmental protection organization, formally filed a lawsuit against Wal-Mart-Shenzhen Department Store Co., Ltd., the world's largest chain retailer Wal-Mart China headquarters, and sued the company for illegally selling GM rice.
"There should not be much problem in the court, but we also need to make further preparations for relevant materials." Wang Weikang, director of the Greenpeace Food and Agriculture Project, told the "Rule of Law Weekend" reporter.
According to the reporter's understanding, this is the first time that Greenpeace International has adopted legal means in China to prevent GM rice from entering commercial channels.
“This shows that international forces have participated in China’s food safety field. It is positive, positive, and gratifying. But the concrete results also depend on the court’s forensic investigation and trial.†said Gao Jiawei, director of the Institute of Administrative Litigation Law at the China University of Political Science and Law. .
Walmart's double standards
In May and June of this year, Greenpeace conducted sampling of bulk rice in Walmart, Wuhan Vanguard, Aeon (Jishino), and PARKnSHOP in four cities of Wuhan, Shenzhen, Dongguan, and Foshan, and commissioned a qualified third-party laboratory. Transgenic components were tested on these purchased samples.
The test results showed that the sample named “Chinese aromatic rice†sampled by Wal-Mart Shenzhen SDIC Department Store Co., Ltd. in Xudong Street, Wuhan City, was positive for transgenics.
"This 'domestic rice' was detected to contain Bt64 and CrylAC two kinds of genetically modified ingredients." Greenpeace lawyer Huang Linlin told the "rule of law over the weekend" reporter, "At present in China, genetically modified rice for commercial production and sales are considered illegal, So Wal-Mart's sale of genetically modified rice in its branch is illegal."
Regarding the reasons for the lawsuit, related personnel from Greenpeace stated that they could file a lawsuit in accordance with the “contract disputes on sale and purchase†or “disputes arising from unqualified agricultural product quality.†“Because the rice was bought from the store, there was an invoice. Equivalent to the verbal contract between the buyer and the seller. Now that the product has a problem, it is a violation of its commitment to sell qualified products, said Wang Weikang.
Greenpeace asked Wal-Mart to return to the reduction of rice purchases of 7.2 yuan, immediately destroy all GM rice that is being sold and inventories, and establish a related control system to prevent similar problems from happening again. At the same time, Wal-Mart needs to pass two or more media to the public. apologize.
Responsible person for Greenpeace stated that at the time they bought bulk rice called “Homemade fragrant rice†from Wal-Mart Store in Xudong Street in Wuhan, and they did not indicate the source of origin or the genetically modified ingredients. "So we can't put the manufacturer as a defendant at the moment," said Huang Linlin.
Huang Linlin also told the “Rule of Law Weekend†reporter that because the Wumart supermarket branch of Xudong Street in Wuhan has no independent legal personality, Shenzhen first filed a lawsuit in its headquarters in Shenzhen.
"Walmart does not have the right to sell genetically modified rice that China does not allow to sell. As an international brand supermarket, it should take up this social responsibility and it should do better," said Greenpeace officials.
According to the reporter’s understanding, the Luohu District People’s Court of Shenzhen City initially approved the lawsuit’s request. However, since Greenpeace is an international organization and the registered office is in Hong Kong, it is necessary to go through the notarization of a mainland-appointed public notary before it can formally file a case.
"This is the first time we have taken legal weapons. As the nation's largest retail chain, Wal-Mart fully understands the impact of genetically modified foods on the human body and the environment. Wal-Mart did not sell any GM products to British consumers as early as 2005. Promise, however, Wal-Mart did not make a commitment in China to implement double standards for Chinese consumers, said Wang Weikang.
Walmart twice "Foul"
This is Greenpeace's second sale of GM rice at a Walmart supermarket branch this year.
In March of this year, Greenpeace conducted sample surveys at 19 stores in nine major supermarket chains in eight cities in China. Eighty-three samples were randomly purchased from fresh products (vegetables, fruits, and rice) at various stores for testing. The results showed that GM rice was sold at the Huangxing South Road branch of Wal-Mart Supermarket in Changsha, Hunan Province.
After the results came out, Greenpeace immediately responded to the relevant departments of Wal-Mart through various channels. Greenpeace has also had face-to-face communication with relevant managers of Wal-Mart China, but it has not received a positive response from Wal-Mart.
Greenpeace related personnel revealed that after the results of the second survey came out, they had also tried to communicate with Wal-Mart related management personnel, but so far they have not received any valid response.
“It is not the first time that Wal-Mart has now discovered that it is selling rice. As a retailer, Wal-Mart should be responsible for this. We have no time to wait for such a hidden problem and resort to the law. "Wang Weikang said.
Our government has always been particularly cautious in approving the commercial production of genetically modified plants. Until now, scientists in related fields have not fully foreseen what kind of biological mutations may be caused by genetic engineering, nor can they predict the harm to the environment and human beings. “Although the experiment is very mature, its possible impact on human beings may not be apparent until the next few generations,†says Yuan Longping, a rice expert.
At the end of 2009, the Ministry of Agriculture issued two biosafety certificates for transgenic insect-resistant rice, namely “Huahui 1†and “Bt Shanyou 63.†This is the first time that China has issued a biosafety certificate for genetically modified staple foods.
After this, the Ministry of Agriculture repeatedly stressed that “approval of the issuance of safety certificates does not mean that commercial production is allowed†and stated that “at present, China has not yet allowed the commercial production of GM rice and its circulation into the marketâ€, the GM rice Industrial applications will take time.
It is understood that the above-mentioned two types of transgenic rice varieties issued by the Ministry of Agriculture at the end of last year were limited to the production and application in Hubei Province and did not allow industrial applications. But the results of the two Greenpeace tests showed that in Hubei and Hunan provinces, GM rice has entered circulation and is sold in supermarkets.
According to Greenpeace researchers, from the beginning of March, the national agricultural administrative department has started to intervene in investigations.
As of press time, the reporter did not receive any valid response from Wal-Mart. The Wal-Mart Public Relations Department only stated: “Because of the complexities of the matter, several departments are required to discuss and discuss before deciding on a clear conclusion and statement.â€
Regulatory loopholes
"If the court finds Wal-Mart's sale of genetically modified rice is illegal, then the relevant government departments should bear some responsibility for poor supervision," Liu Junhai, a professor at Renmin University of China, said in an interview with the "Rule of Law Weekend" reporter.
Huang Linlin believes that in this incident, the local industrial and commercial departments had the right to investigate and punish, but did not see the relevant departments involved in the investigation. "But when it comes to this lawsuit, we only pay attention to the case itself," said Huang Linlin.
“The key to the problem is that retailers are reluctant to increase monitoring costs and go for genetic screening on the products they sell.†Huang Linlin told the “Rule of Law Weekend†reporter. She believes that companies must have strict monitoring mechanisms to prevent GM rice from entering supermarkets during the commodity procurement process. "Supermarkets should take up this responsibility."
Reporter access to the relevant materials related to food into the circulation, discovered in 2009, the official start of implementation of the "circulation of food safety supervision and management measures" in Article III clearly states: food business operator shall engage in food in accordance with the laws, regulations and food safety standards Business activities, establish and improve food safety management systems, take effective management measures, and ensure food safety. Food handlers are responsible for the food safety they operate and are responsible to the society and the public and assume social responsibility.
"This is not only a question of corporate self-regulation, but also an issue of administrative supervision," Liu Junhai said.
Huang Linlin expressed the same view. She believes that monitoring efficiency should be jointly promoted by both the administrative supervision system and retailer self-regulation. "The enforcement of this lawsuit also needs to improve the management of food safety for retailers through the administrative system," she said.
“Since the country has standards for the safety of genetically modified foods, what is highlighted here is enforcement issues. The local industry and commerce, quality inspection and health departments should all have corresponding responsibilities to make up for regulatory loopholes,†Gao Jiawei said.
Article 4 of the “Measures for the Supervision and Administration of Food Safety in Circulation Links†clearly stipulates that: The administration for industry and commerce shall supervise and administer the food safety in the circulation in accordance with the laws, regulations and the responsibilities prescribed by the State Council and the provisions of these Measures.
"The place where the act took place was in Wuhan, Hubei Province, so it is necessary to investigate the regulatory responsibilities of the local authorities." Gao Jiawei said.
At the same time, Greenpeace invited the relevant government departments to assume the corresponding regulatory responsibilities, carry out thorough investigations from the source of seeds to rice products, and ensure that the entire food chain is completely away from the pollution of illegal GM rice. "Since the transgenic lawlessness has appeared in all aspects of seed, rice and rice products, China's urgent need to establish a includes a team of different sectors of agriculture, industry and commerce, environmental protection and public health, to expand all-round investigation and supervision." Wang Weikang said.
In the interview, Gao Jiawei believes that an important significance of this case is that “under the background of globalization, how to face the reality of various international forces participating in the supervision of domestic food safety is also a matter for our administrative law enforcement. A big challenge."
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