China In the Right Direction

China's recent announcement that it will begin a four-month campaign on tainted food, drugs and exports is a step in the right direction. Unless China begins to play according to international rules and by international standards, it will lose all the good will it earned by offering cheaper products. Consumers have begun to question the "Made in China" label.

Chinese Vice Premier Wu Yi announced the "war" to focus on the troublesome products that have questioned China's commitment to quality.

The world's largest toymaker, Mattel, often thought of as an American company, recalled more than 18 million Chinese-made toys recently.

Chinese standards have been questioned in numerous products such as toothpaste, animal-food ingredients, tires, eels and seafood, and deadly chemicals in cough medicine.

Not long ago I commented on the execution of Zheng Xiaoyu, who was the former head of the national food and drug safety watchdog, and was executed in July for taking bribes.