SHANGHAI CPPCC CHAIR DEFENDS CITY'S FOOD SAFETY RECORD;

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 SHANGHAI 000412 SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPT ALSO FOR EAP PDAS DAVIES DEPT ALSO FOR EAP/CM SHEAR, THORNTON, FLATT DEPT ALSO FOR EAP/PD GALT, EMMONS DEPT ALSO FOR L/EMP BROOKS DEPT ALSO FOR ECA ROMANOWSKI, KORYCKI HHS ALSO FOR FDA NSC FOR WINTER, LOI USDOC FOR ITA DAS KASOFF, ITA/MAC/OCEA PRUITT USDOC FOR DG FOREIGN COMMERCIAL SERVICE HERNANDEZ TREASURY FOR OASIA DOHNER, HAARSAGER, CUSHMAN, WINSHIP TREASURY FOR DCOS TAIYA SMITH, AMBASSADOR HOLMER, DAN WRIGHT E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ECON PGOV EAGR PREL BEXP ETRD CH SUBJECT: SHANGHAI CPPCC CHAIR DEFENDS CITY'S FOOD SAFETY RECORD; LOOKS TO U.S. FOR HELP ON WORLD EXPO REF: A. (A) BEIJING 3635 ¶B. (B) SHANGHAI 391 (U) This cable is sensitive but unclassified and for official use only. Not for distribution outside of USG channels or via the internet. Summary -------------- ¶1. (SBU) Feng Guoqin, Chairman of the Shanghai Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), defended Shanghai's food safety record during an introductory call by the Consul General on September 22, stating that inspection teams are working to ensure that dairy products in the city are safe. While acknowledging the negative attention generated by the food safety scandal, Feng said he hopes other news from China is attracting positive coverage in the United States, and, like other municipal leaders, he highlighted the Shanghai 2010 World Expo as an opportunity for further U.S.-China cooperation. Delegates at the Shanghai Committee of the CPPCC first proposed in 1992 that the city bid to host the World Expo, and Feng said the CPPCC will play a greater role as a government advisory body on economic, political, cultural, and environmental issues in the future. End Summary. Shanghai's Concerns Over Food Safety Scandal -------------- ¶2. (SBU) Chinese citizens are concerned about the reports of tainted milk, and Shanghainese are "indignant" about food safety lapses, Feng told the Consul General on September 22. Milk produced in Shanghai remains safe, Feng insisted, singling out Guangming (Bright) Dairy products available in Shanghai stores as being free from melamine even though traces have been found in the brand elsewhere. ¶3. (SBU) In response to the Consul General's question about testing milk products, Feng stated that the Shanghai Municipal Government considers food safety a top priority, and there currently are more than 40 inspection teams working in Shanghai �A;to ensure all milk available on the shelves is safe. Feng added that he helped Shanghai implement a supply chain tracing system for food products that uses bar codes when he was Vice Mayor in 1998 based on a system he had seen when visiting a U.S. company the previous year. ¶4. (SBU) Feng hopes that, despite current food safety problems, Americans will have a more positive view of China. The U.S.-China relationship is at its "best and most stable" point in recent history, and he believes the U.S.-China relationship, as well as the United States' relationship with Shanghai, will improve greatly in the next few years. The Consul General replied that the recent Beijing Olympics contributed to Americans' generally positive view of China, while the growing number of U.S. students in China shows American interest in the country and culture. Great Expectations for World Expo -------------- ¶5. (SBU) Looking forward to future U.S.-China exchanges, Feng echoed the sentiments previously expressed by other municipal officials (Ref B),stating his hope that the U.S. Pavilion for the Shanghai 2010 World Expo would be a highlight of the Expo. The relationship between the Shanghai and American business communities is extremely close, with combined investments in the SHANGHAI 00000412 002 OF 002 tens of billions of dollars, Feng said, and commercial relationships will have grown stronger by 2010. Feng said Chinese visa issue restrictions would not limit U.S. involvement in the Expo as they constrained attendance at the Beijing Olympics, stating that the six-month length of the Expo, security advances made by 2010, and the differences between Shanghai and Beijing all would make foreign participation easier. ¶6. (SBU) Feng claimed that the Shanghai Committee of the CPPCC was instrumental in bringing the World Expo to Shanghai, first proposing in 1992 that the city host the Expo. He claimed that Shanghai CPPCC members also were the first to float proposals for the Pudong New Area (in 1981, nine years before it was launched) and Shanghai's Yangshan Deep Water Seaport. The high education level of CPPCC members leads to high quality proposals, Feng said. CPPCC on Economy, Politics, Culture, and Environment -------------- -------------- ¶7. (SBU) Proposals from the national CPPCC, as well as from the Shanghai CPPCC, cover the waterfront of issues that are important to the Communist Party of China (CPC),Feng said. He stated that the CPPCC will become more important in the future because of the Central Government's focus on Hu Jintao's Scientific Development Concept and the balance between economic, political, cultural, and environmental problems. The Shanghai Consular Corps can expect a CPPCC briefing on its expanding role before year's end. The Shanghai CPPCC serves as a "big thinktank" to the Municipal Government, Feng said, and its 809 members submitted 854 proposals, some of which were "forward thinking and visionary" during the "Two Meetings" (Lianghui) in January 2008. Meeting Participants -------------- ¶8. (SBU) Chinese Participants: Feng Guoqin, Chairman of CPPCC Shanghai Committee Chen Haigang, CPPCC Shanghai Committee Secretary General Guan Weiyong, CPPCC Shanghai Committee Standing Committee Member, Deputy Secretary-General and Director of the General Office Wang Junwei, CPPCC Shanghai Committee Foreign Affairs Office Chen Yanhua, Shanghai Municipal Foreign Affairs Office Evan Liu, Shanghai Municipal Foreign Affairs Office U.S. Participants: Beatrice Camp, Consul General Simon Schuchat, Deputy Principal Officer Christopher Beede, Pol/Econ Chief Matt Murray, Political Officer (Notetaker) Fei Yuying, Consulate Interpreter CAMP