Asahi: Task force planned to crack down on mislabelled food products
The government Monday decided to set up a task force to crack down mislabelled food products, part of an emergency package of measures to give the public more security in their daily lives. The policy package, which was initiated by Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda and approved at a ministerial meeting, addresses 61 problems based on 345 opinions and complaints sent by people through the Internet and other means...Regulations will also be tightened in response to the increasing number of cases of imported dishes and other tableware containing lead beyond safety standards. The emergency package also includes renovations of about 10,000 public elementary and junior high school buildings to enhance their quake-resistance levels in five years...To better protect consumers from vicious business tactics involving credit transactions, the government will revise the law on installment payments to oblige consumer credit companies to register with the government...To improve job security, the government will introduce a system to pay incentive money to companies that hire full-time workers instead of nonregular employees...The government also plans to sponsor symposiums on food safety and lectures on illegal and hazardous Internet sites...more...
