Risk and Food Safety in China and Japan

Louis Augustin-Jean is a Research Fellow at the Centre for Economic Research, the University of Paris-Nord (CEPN), France.Jean-Pierre Poulain is a Professor at Toulouse University Jean Jaurès, France, and at Taylor's University, Malaysia.

• List of FiguresList of TablesList of AbbreviationsNotes on ContributorsIntroductionPart 1 Theoretical and Regulatory FrameworkChapter 1 Beyond Weak Signals Listening Theory: From Risk Analysis to the Management of Alimentary Concerns Jean-Pierre PoulainChapter 2 Food Safety and Consumer Rationality: Is a "Food Pact" Possible? Florent ChampyChapter 3 Contemporary Food Crises: When Industrial Failure Meets State Impotence Vincent SimoulinPart 2 Perspectives from Japan and ChinaChapter 4 Revisiting Frank Knight: Risks and Uncertainties in the Context of Food Safety in Japan after the Fukushima Nuclear Accident Louis Augustin-JeanChapter 5 Essential Elements for Interactive Risk Communication in the Food-Related Emergencies: A Model and Experiments on the Health Effects of Radioactive Substances Yoko NiiyamaChapter 6 The Private-Public Complementary Relationship for Managing Catastrophic Risk in Egg Production and Marketing in JapanMichitoshi YamaguchiChapter 7 The Rise of a Risk-Based Approach to Implementing Food Safety Law in China Yongkang AnChapter 8 A Study on Peasant Behaviour and Peasant Niche in Contemporary China’s Agri-food Supply System: Evidence from Henan Province Jinghan Ke and Shuji HisanoChapter 9 Food Risks? What Food Risks? – Gaps between Perception and Practice in Chinese Food Consumption David Kurt HeroldConclusionIndex

"In this timely edited volume, Augustin-Jean and Poulain join theoretical work on food systems from diverse disciplines related to Beck’s 'risk society' to empirical studies of specific foods and food-related crises that emerged in China and Japan. The roles of government and governance systems as they intersect with food and food systems in these highly centralized countries serve as welcome unifying themes for the book." -- Gregory Veeck, Professor of Geography, Western Michigan University, USA"This is an interesting approach to analysing food safety and its relationship with international trade from a socio-economic stance, which involves considerations of consumer safety, public health, industry and political interests. Understanding the macroscopic environment will provide a good opportunity for all stakeholders to re-evaluate their roles from a truly global perspective." -- Terence L.T. Lau, Director of Innovation and Technology Development, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong"Comparative studies of food safety are rare. So are books combining theoretical and empirical analysis. This stimulating collection breaks the mold. It is destined to provide food for thought, no pun intended, to all people concerned with food safety and food quality, regardless of discipline. It consists of a thorough introduction by the co-editors on the relations between food safety and risks, mainly from a sociological perspective, followed by valuable contributions on the theoretical and regulatory frameworks of food safety and outstanding empirical studies of Japan and China. The authors’ theoretical reflections and diverse case studies emphasize two general points: first, food risks cannot be completely controlled, and there is no ‘zero risk’; and second, food risks are multi-dimensional, often involving food secu