The agriculture ministry has announced that it will build a system to ensure the safety of agricultural products within five years, amid growing public concern about food safety. While the move is a worthy attempt to make our food safe, the nation needs to better coordinate its administrative forces to accelerate the pace of such efforts.

The Ministry of Agriculture said during a national conference on agricultural goods on Monday that the system will mainly focus on the establishment of standards for farm chemicals, so that the amount of chemical residues on agricultural products can be monitored and reduced.

We are hopeful that the ministry will set up the system as scheduled. Given the worrying food safety problems that have emerged in recent years and the increased public awareness of food safety, it is a meaningful first step, one that must be taken as soon as possible.