The steroid bust announced earlier this week was a good step forward in stemming the flow of illegal performance-enhancing drugs. But it was even more than that.
The help Chinese authorities have offered in pursuing Chinese suppliers of raw materials is a promising example of how authorities in both countries can cooperate to address a spectrum of product import problems.
The support shown by the Chinese in this instance would be invaluable in preventing more lead- painted toys and contaminated wheat gluten from flooding U.S. markets.
Of course, the Chinese have a big motivation in assisting in the steroid probe. The country has gone to great lengths to burnish its image in advance of the 2008 Summer Olympic games in Beijing.
Nevertheless, the recent announcement that China’s cabinet would investigate charges that 37 Chinese factories are supplying illegal U.S. labs is a welcome development in and of itself.
Dick Pound, president of the World Anti-Doping Agency, arrived in China in recent days and said authorities there have told him they are prepared to shut down factories.
Given that 99 percent of the raw materials used to create illicit performance-enhancing steroids and human growth hormone come from China, such a crackdown is a positive step in the fight against doping in sports.
Earlier this week, the Drug Enforcement Administration said 124 people had been arrested in what authorities called “Operation Raw Deal.” Law enforcement officers raided 56 labs in the U.S. and seized 1.4 million doses of steroids.
The help of Chinese authorities thus far has been a key part of addressing what really is a public health issue.
It would be encouraging to see this level of cooperation when it comes to Chinese toothpaste tainted with material used in antifreeze and tens of thousands of toys that are suspected of being coated with paint that has unacceptably high levels of lead.
China has a mixed report card in this regard. Authorities there have begun inspections of farms, groceries and factories in an effort to identify tainted or counterfeit goods.
But they’ve also lashed out against those who have criticized their exports. In recent weeks, Chinese authorities have very publicly blocked the import of American wood products (saying they were infested with insects), American meat, Indonesian seafood and products from several other countries.
That reaction doesn’t help matters. The vast problem of policing the quality of products that come out of thousands of Chinese factories is going to require cooperation among authorities around the world.
