The National Health and Family Planning Commission recently published a draft document on its website, suggesting it intends to allow the addition of powdered gold foil to products. The move aroused debate because traditional Chinese medicine believes gold, as a heavy metal, is harmful to health if eaten. An anonymous member of the staff said a liquor company had urged them to do so, but as yet there has been no official explanation. Comments:

In a 2011 document, the Ministry of Health, the agency that preceded the National Health and Family Planning Commission, clearly prohibited gold from being added to food. If the commission means to revise this principle, the officials need to at least offer some explanation so that people know whether to support it or not.

hsw.cn, Feb 4

Is it truly necessary to add gold to a white spirit? There is not yet any conclusive evidence and the industry association urges expert discussions before deciding whether to adopt the initiative. We oppose the move if it is without technological necessity.

Ma Yong, deputy director of China National Food Industry Association White Spirit Committee, Feb 4

According to the Food Safety Law, a material must pass a risk evaluation and prove the necessary technology is available before being used as a food additive. Therefore it is actually illegal for the National Health and Family Planning Commission to simply publicize a draft without any of the necessary supporting materials. Have they forgotten their role of protecting food safety and defined themselves as spokespersons for the liquor company's interests instead?

Beijing News, Feb 4

Consuming micro-amounts of gold will neither benefit nor harm the human body. However, gold is not a necessity either, and if a person takes food that contains it, in the long run it might cause accumulation of heavy metal inside the body and affect digestion.

Feng Xiaoxia, a gastroenterology physician at the Second Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Feb 4