Chinese Olympic organizers yesterday criticized US athletes who are
bringing their own food to the Games in Beijing this summer instead of
trusting local cuisine.
Competitors are banned from importing their own food into the
athletes' village under rules drawn up by the International Olympic
Committee (IOC) that are designed to protect the rights of sponsors
such as McDonald's and to police the use of illegal substances.
The United States Olympic Committee, which will have more than 600
people in its delegation, is planning to transport its own produce
because of fears about public health and food standards in China.
The athletes will eat their three daily meals at their training camp
at a local university, which is outside the official confines of the
Olympic Park.
"I feel it's a pity that they decided to take their own food," Kang
Yi, the head of the food division for the Beijing Olympic organizing
committee, said. "We have made lots of preparations to ensure that the
athletes can get together at the Olympic Games."
The athletes' village will house about 17,000 athletes and officials
during the 16-day event in Beijing, serving up to 6,000 meals
simultaneously in several restaurants round the clock.
It is standard practice for delegations to eat the food prepared by
the contract caterer, in this case Aramark, a Fortune 500 company
based in Philadelphia. The British Olympic Association said that it
would not be taking food for its 270 athletes. The party will include
one nutritionist who will work with local chefs to prepare the team's
meals.
Other countries are understood to be considering plans to cater their
own food after a series of public health scares in China. Chinese-made
dumplings contaminated by pesticides made thousands of Japanese ill
last month.
Tang Yunhua, a spokeswoman for the Beijing Municipal Office for Food
Safety, said: "The standards for Olympic food safety are much more
strict than international standards."


Ashling O'Connor
From The Times
February 22, 2008


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