China to Invest 8.8b in Food, Drug Monitoring (China)
This article was originally published in PharmAsia News
Executive Summary
China will invest 8.8 billion yuan ($1.73 billion) in the next three to five years on infrastructure for a nationwide food and drug safety system. The central government will provide 6.3 billion yuan and local governments will invest 2.5 billion yuan to build new centers, buy equipment and connect branches. As part of the effort, the National Institute for the Control of Pharmaceutical and Biological Products in Beijing will be relocated and rebuilt, as will 18,000-square-meter biological labs in the drug control institutes in 16 ports. A monitoring system will be established for the adverse reactions of drugs that will link a national center with 31 local branches. A government official said the country needs three to five years to implement the project to put food and drug safety in line with the country's economic and social development. SFDA also outlined several key tasks in enhancing supervision of food and drugs, especially medical equipment, for the rest of this year. China will also crack down on Web sites illegally selling medicines and health products after a spate of consumer goods scandals intensified trade friction with the United States (Click here for more