Why are bones not allowed in China?

Bones are not allowed to be imported into China due to strict regulations aimed at preventing the spread of diseases like mad cow disease and foot-and-mouth disease. China has had longstanding bans on many animal products from countries like the US, UK, Canada and parts of Europe where these diseases have occurred. Let’s explore the reasons behind China’s bone ban in more detail.

History of the Bone Ban

In 2003, China imposed a ban on cow bones and bone products from Canada after a case of mad cow disease was reported in Alberta. Mad cow disease, otherwise known as bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), is a fatal neurodegenerative disease in cattle that can spread to humans if contaminated meat is consumed. China wanted to prevent any possibility of contaminated Canadian beef or bones from entering the country, so implemented a sweeping ban.

The ban was expanded in 2005 to include bones from all countries that had reported cases of BSE, including the US and UK. This was in response to additional cases of mad cow disease still arising in these countries despite control efforts. China took the stance that it wasn’t worth the risk of allowing any bones from places with BSE to come into their markets.

Foot-and-mouth disease has also been a concern motivating China’s stringent bone regulations. Foot-and-mouth is a highly contagious viral disease affecting cloven-hoofed animals like cows, pigs, sheep, and goats. It can spread rapidly and cause enormous economic damage. In 2001, there was a significant foot-and-mouth outbreak in the UK that required mass slaughtering of over 10 million animals. China restricted a number of animal imports from the UK and EU after this event to reduce disease introduction risks.

Current Regulations on Bones

Today, China’s bone ban remains in place and is strictly enforced by customs officials. Here are some key details about the regulations:

• All beef and cattle bones are prohibited from countries with history of BSE like the US, Canada, UK.
• Pig, sheep, and goat bones are banned from countries with prior foot-and-mouth outbreaks like the UK.
• Bones must come from verifiably healthy animal stocks raised in controlled conditions without disease exposure.
• Bones intended for human consumption must meet high quality standards – no fragments or splinters allowed.
• Proper documentation, certification, and processing required for bone products.
• Smuggling bones into China or attempting to bypass quarantine can lead to criminal prosecution.

China’s General Administration of Customs frequently updates lists of specific bone products permitted or prohibited from different countries based on updated disease statuses and risk factors. All bones and bone goods are subject to inspection at Chinese ports and airports.

Reasons for Maintaining the Bone Ban

China is intent on upholding its stringent bone regulations because of the following considerations:

1. Protect public health – Preventing potential spread of severe illnesses like BSE and foot-and-mouth remains a top priority. Restricting high-risk bones shuts an important disease transmission route.
2. Safeguard domestic agriculture – Livestock industries are crucial to China’s economy and food security. An outbreak could be disastrous. The bone ban provides an additional buffer against foreign diseases.
3. Consumer confidence – After past food safety scandals, Chinese consumers deeply value quality control protections. Keeping potentially contaminated bones out of the food system maintains confidence.
4. Encourage high standards – The bone ban pressures trading partners to enforce rigorous disease surveillance and bone processing standards if they want market access.
5. Trade negotiation tactic – The ban provides China leverage in broader trade talks with countries hoping to export animal products to the large Chinese market.

Essentially, the bone ban allows China to minimize external disease risks without fully sacrificing market supply, giving it regulatory authority and negotiating power.

Criticisms and Impact of the Bone Ban

China’s stringent bone regulations have drawn some criticisms as well, including:

• Trade partners accuse China of protectionism and overregulation.
• Stringent bone rules seen as politically motivated by some.
• Lack of bone access argued to hurt food manufacturers and other industries.
• Onerous certification requirements create barriers for exporters.
• Testing and inspections at Chinese borders cause shipping delays.
• Bans deprive China of some nutritional and culinary benefits of bones.

The bone ban has significantly reduced bone commodity imports into China from certain countries. This has impacted foreign beef and bone product producers. It has also made sourcing bones for certain uses like bone broth more difficult and costly for Chinese businesses.

However, China considers the public health protections to justify these trade-offs. It is unlikely to lift its bone ban policies anytime soon given ongoing global disease concerns and the priority placed on food security.

Enforcement of the Ban

Chinese customs authorities take stringent steps to enforce the bone import regulations:

• Detailed inspections at all ports of bone product packaging, paperwork, sanitation, processing, and more.
• Bones smuggled in passenger luggage or mail seized and destroyed.
• Technologies like x-ray scanning used to detect concealed bones.
• Heavy fines and blacklisting of importers caught violating bone regulations.
• Exporters can face multi-year bans for repeatedly sending prohibited bone items.
• Criminal charges like smuggling and fraud for those circumventing the rules.

China also runs public education campaigns explaining the bone ban and penalties. Television spots, social media posts, airport signage and more emphasize the legal restrictions and health rationales to the public.

A zero-tolerance approach is taken even for seemingly harmless items like decorative bones or dog treats if they break the regulations. China remains vigilant about blocking any potential bone disease pathways.

The Future of the Bone Ban

Disease experts believe China is still a long way from relaxing its bone ban given lingering risks:

• Sporadic BSE cases still occurring in some countries.
• No foot-and-mouth vaccines fully prevent infection and transmission.
• Increased global travel and trade raise disease introduction risks.
• Prevention is priority with diseases that spread rapidly once introduced.

However, China may open its bone market incrementally to select countries that can rigorously demonstrate freedom from BSE, foot-and-mouth and other concerning illnesses among their livestock. This could eventually include countries like Australia and New Zealand with strong animal disease controls and geographical advantages.

China is also likely to continue leveraging the bone ban regulations in trade negotiations. For example, it may offer wider bone access in exchange for export partners opening their markets to Chinese agriculture products. But public health interests will remain paramount in policy decisions.

Conclusion

In summary, China’s extensive prohibitions on cow, pig, sheep and other animal bones originate from justified public health concerns. The bone ban provides meaningful protections against introduction of potentially catastrophic livestock diseases. Although the regulations have drawbacks like trade barriers and product limitations, China considers these costs outweighed by the benefits of disease prevention and food system security. Vigilant enforcement will continue to shut the door on both diseased bones and those trying to skirt the rules.