390 days to go
Imagine scores of athletes laid low by a mystery virus, reducing the Beijing Olympics to a hollow shell of the great sporting event for which everyone is gearing up. It's a nightmare scenario and one that organisers are taking very seriously.
The security of major events tends to focus on counter-terrorism measures or tighter security around the stadiums. But a more potent threat is actually remarkably mundane. It's on the plate in front of you or in the rice bowl you're holding. Food, glorious food.
'The health and safety aspect is going to be a major issue,' said one security expert, who requested anonymity. 'I really believe, in real terms, that the risk of mass food poisonings from bad food poses a greater threat than al-Qaeda or some other terrorist outfit.
'It sounds kind of crazy but it's a much more realistic threat,' the expert said.
Food safety has topped the headlines in China for weeks and the mainland government has been under pressure to do something about consumer safety after a series of breaches and deaths involving toxins in food, both for humans and animals, as well as bad medicines and other products.
