US grocery store chain Trader Joe's will stop offering some mainland- grown food products, it said, because of customer concerns about safety. Garlic, frozen organic spinach and other "single ingredient" food items from the mainland will be phased out by April 1, although products that include ingredients from both China and other sources will remain.
The company believes the foods are safe but "we will continue to source products from other regions until our customers feel as confident as we do about the quality and safety of Chinese products," Trader Joe's spokeswoman Alison Mochizuki said.
Mochizuki did not indicate how long the products would be off the shelves or how many items were affected.
China's exports have come under intense scrutiny in the past year after lead or dangerous chemicals were found in goods ranging from pet food to toys and toothpaste.
But Trader Joe's, which offers a variety of organic, gourmet and imported foods in nearly 300 United States stores, went further than some other chains.
Wegmans, which has about 70 stores in five eastern US states, stopped buying Chinese-grown garlic last year but continued to sell other produce.
"We have not made any decision to eliminate any product lines because of them being from China," spokeswoman Jeanne Colleluori said.
