How do you tell where a hairy crab comes from?

Many sellers claim their crabs are harvested from Yangcheng Lake in East China's Jiangsu Province. Crabs from this lake are world-renowned, and fetch extravagant prices. Unfortunately, some unscrupulous sellers may not be telling the truth.

To ease the anxiety of connoisseurs who shell out as much as 400-500 yuan (US$50-62) for a kilogram of this traditional delicacy, a national standard has been imposed on the quality of Yangcheng Lake crabs, according to sources with the Suzhou Crab Business Association.

Every year, thousands of tons of these crabs are sold worldwide. However, the high demand has caused problems for legitimate sellers.

"We lost a big chunk of our market share last year as a result of breeders who passed off their own crabs as ours," complained Pu Jianping, president of Balu Yangcheng Crab Co Ltd.

There were also reports from Taiwan about a hairy crab imported from the mainland that was tested and found to contain 10 times the safe level of chloramphenicol, an antibiotic that can cause liver damage.

Officials from Suzhou said this crab could not be genuine, because the harvest season of Yangcheng Lake crabs will not start until later this month.

The standard issued by the State Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine is designed to protect the interests of both breeders and consumers.

The standard specifies the weight as well as prices for different grades of Yangcheng Lake crabs. To make it easier for inspectors and consumers, a special ring will be put on each crab.

The crab business in the Suzhou area involves about 90 companies and 1,600 families. Some of the families doubt the new measure can be implemented with success.

(China Daily September 10, 2005)