2006年是国内食品卫生安全不寻常的一年，特别是下半年，几起大事件接踵而至。回顾一年，不论是对农产品的立法与实施，还是对今天的“3.15国际消费者权益日”都具有现实意义。食品卫生“安全”回顾——北京福寿螺引发食源性疾病、上海瘦肉精中毒事件、苏丹红红心鸭蛋事件、多宝鱼致癌风波。

Slimy snails

Between June and August, 87 people fell ill after eating half-cooked snails in a Beijing restaurant. Tests carried out showed they had a type of angiostrongyliasis infection, in whichparasitesthat attack the brain and thespinal cordthat can lead to meningitis. On August 8, the authorities ordered the restaurant to stop selling the dish.

Meat menace

In mid-September, meat in some Shanghai markets was found to contain clenobuterol hydrochloride, a chemical added to pigs'fodderto get "leaner quality meat". In humans, the additive can cause vertigo and nausea, and a patient could slip into a coma and even die. Hence, it's strictly banned from being used in food products.

More than 300 people suffered clenobuterol hydrochloride poisoning. The Ministry of Agriculture swung into action and conducted thorough checks the markets and banned the sale of contaminated pork.

Edgy eggs

Mid-November: farmers and poultry owners in some parts of Hebei Province fedred sudan dyeto their ducks to make them lay eggs with redyolks. The reason: eggs with red yolks fetch a higher price than those with regular yellow yolks. But red sudan dye is carcinogenic. Major cities soon banned the sale of such eggs. On November 27, the Ministry of Agriculture declared that all the red-yolk eggs and the ducks that had been fed with the cancer-causing dye had been destroyed.

Fish fear

At the end of November, Shanghai authorities found excessive cancer-causingchemical residues(nitrofuran and chloromycetin) in 30 samples of turbot, a flat fish served at banquets andupscale restaurants. The sale of the fish was banned later. Some farmers reportedly fed the fish large quantities of medicinal supplements, which had left harmful, cancer-causing residues, to raise their immunity to disease.

（China Daily） 

Vocabulary:    

parasite：寄生虫（文中指“广州管圆线虫Ⅲ期幼虫”）

spinal cord: 脊髓

meningitis：脑膜炎

leaner quality meat: 一级瘦肉

yolk: 蛋黄

chemical residues: 化学残留物

upscale restaurants: 高档宾馆

（英语点津陈蓓编辑）