An official with China's food and drug watchdog said yesterday that the country is on high alert for possible product safety issues as the financial crisis begins to hit home.

Shao Mingli, director of the State Food and Drug Administration, told a national meeting that food and drug safety plays an important role in the country's overall economic and social development.

The government has given top priority to maintaining economic growth to cope with the global financial crisis, Shao said.

As such, the country is stepping up reforms in the food and drug industrial structure and management, Shao said.

But conflicts arising from the restructuring of some companies and mergers and acquisitions might affect production quality management, he said. Some enterprises might conduct production in violation of standards in an attempt to ease their financial burdens, the official added.

Shao called on food and drug supervision departments at all levels to enhance their awareness of quality and safety in the new year and take actions to protect the public.

The FDA said that it dealt with 297,500 cases involving illegal drugs and medical equipment with a total value of about 600 million yuan (US$88 million) in 2008.

"The administration will focus on improving regulations and setting stricter and higher standards of market access for medicines this year," he said.

Firms that violate laws or regulations and food and drug supervision departments failing to perform their duties will be dealt with harshly, he said.

(Xinhua News Agency January 14, 2009)