Shandong Issues Notice on Strengthening Quality and Safety Risk Monitoring of Garlic Sprouts

To all municipal agricultural bureaus (agricultural committees) and relevant units under the department:

Our province is a major producer and cold-storage keeper of garlic sprouts. Every May, more than 3 million mu of garlic sprouts across the province enter the harvest period intensively. Apart from a small amount sold and consumed in season, more than 90% of the garlic sprout output needs cold storage. There are quality and safety risks that cannot be ignored in such stages as garlic cultivation, garlic sprout harvesting, transport and storage. In accordance with the province's food safety work arrangements, the notice on strengthening quality and safety risk monitoring of garlic sprouts is hereby issued as follows.

I. Effectively strengthen organizational leadership

Garlic and garlic sprouts are traditional advantageous vegetable varieties of our province, with important influence nationwide and even abroad, forming well-known agricultural product brands such as “Cangshan Garlic” and “Jinxiang Garlic”, and are an important industry for increasing farmers' income. All municipalities, especially advantageous production areas for garlic and garlic sprouts such as Linyi, Jining, Tai'an and Laiwu, must attach great importance to this, effectively strengthen quality and safety supervision of garlic sprouts, set up dedicated supervision organizations, formulate risk monitoring plans, clarify work promotion measures, compact supervision responsibilities at every level, and conduct timely work scheduling. It is necessary, in conjunction with the pilot management of qualification certificates for edible agricultural products, to explore and promote the implementation of agricultural product qualification certificate management for garlic and garlic sprouts.

Agricultural departments of all municipalities must strengthen communication and coordination with food supervision departments, and promptly notify them of information and data on quality supervision of garlic sprouts in the “three pre-” stages. For new situations encountered when garlic sprouts enter the circulation link, where assistance from agricultural departments is needed, support must be given in testing and inspection, case investigation and handling, expert consultation and other aspects.

II. Vigorously grasp pesticide supervision

All localities must, in conjunction with the 2017 special campaign against counterfeit agricultural materials, focus on rectifying highly toxic and highly hazardous pesticides, persist in combining crackdown with prevention, firmly grasp source control, and reduce safety risks to the lowest point.

First, carry out a special rectification campaign against highly toxic and highly hazardous pesticides. In garlic production areas, carry out a full-coverage, seamless special rectification campaign against highly toxic and highly hazardous pesticides, severely crack down on illegal operation and use of highly toxic and highly hazardous pesticides, and promptly file and investigate cases. For any pesticide involved in a case that requires testing, the Provincial Pesticide Verification Institute will open a free, rapid-testing green channel to support case investigation and handling in all localities.

Second, standardize pesticide operations. All localities must strengthen routine management of pesticide operating units, urge distributors to establish purchase and sales ledgers and various records to achieve traceability management. Implement the pesticide operation notification and publicity system well; for specific pesticide products already registered for use on garlic, such as prochloraz, difenoconazole, metiram, pyraclostrobin, phoxim and malathion, the operation notification threshold must be firmly controlled. Do a good job of routine market inspections, focusing supervision and crackdown on the behavior of selling pesticides through mobile vendors without fixed stores.

Third, do a good job of training and guidance on pesticide use. It is necessary to rely on and integrate multiple project resources at the provincial, municipal and county levels, such as key industry technology training and new-type professional farmer training, focus on cooperatives, large-scale growers and production bases, carry out training in diverse forms, and guide scientific and rational pesticide use. It is necessary to make full use of methods such as distributing plain-language leaflets, radio broadcasts from publicity vehicles, and rural wall slogans to inform growers that they should use pesticides registered for use on garlic, use pesticides according to the use period, method, dosage and frequency specified on the pesticide product label, and harvest garlic strictly according to the safe interval period.

III. Strengthen supervisory spot checks and risk monitoring

The second supervisory spot check and routine monitoring tasks of the Provincial Department of Agriculture must, in terms of timing and sample quantity, be closely linked with quality and safety risk monitoring of garlic sprouts, increase the proportion of garlic sprout samples spot-checked in major producing municipalities and counties, fully grasp the level and baseline of garlic sprout quality and safety, and use the monitoring results as an important reference basis for the creation of agricultural product quality and safety counties. All municipalities must also plan their schemes early, increase monitoring frequency, and effectively raise the quality and safety level of garlic sprouts.

IV. Conduct scientific assessment and strengthen guidance

All localities must further sort out and study the problems that may be encountered in each link of the “three pre-” stages for garlic and garlic sprouts, fully grasp risk points, and continuously improve response and handling contingency plans. It is necessary to respond promptly to social concerns, closely monitor public opinion trends on WeChat official accounts and other new media, give play to the professional advantages of well-known agricultural experts and legal scholars, and speak positively and guide correctly.