Chinese agricultural authorities seized 1.53 billion yuan
(US$196 million) worth of counterfeit agricultural production
materials last year, the Ministry of Agriculture said on
Tuesday.
The seizures would safeguard the interests of hundreds of
millions farmers and save them money, said a ministry
spokesman.
The office said the nationwide crackdown mainly focused on fake
fertilizers, pesticides and seed during spring and autumn.
It said the ministry had also opened a hotline number -- 12316
-- to take farmers' complaints and launched a website to raise
awareness of fake materials and expose the most serious counterfeit
cases.
(Xinhua News Agency January 17, 2007)