BEIJING — China's problems with food safety are not major and should not be overblown, an official said today in the latest push to alleviate international concerns over its products.

Li Dongsheng, vice minister for the State Administration for Industry and Commerce, said China has over the years developed "very good, very complete methods" to regulate product safety. Questions have arisen over China's safety checks amid increasing number of tainted items have been found both inside and outside the country.

"Yes, there are now some problems of food safety of Chinese products. However, they are not serious. We should not exaggerate those problems," Li told about 130 foreign and domestic reporters on a trip organized by the State Council, China's Cabinet.

The event, which also included a rare visit to a food safety test lab and a storehouse for goods confiscated during anti-piracy raids, was arranged to show off China's quality measures and burnish the country's battered image.

"We do believe this very important for the people," Li said at a news conference at the beginning of the four-hour trip.

"We are very concerned about food safety in China and very concerned about protecting the rights of consumers," he said.

At the Beijing food lab, technicians wearing white coats tested packages of spring rolls, dumplings and other frozen foods for toxic chemicals. Others sat at computers analyzing results.

China's poor safety record has increasingly come under the spotlight as its goods make their way to global markets. Major buyers the United States, Japan, and the European Union have pushed for Beijing to improve inspections.

The pressure has increased in the past few months as U.S. inspectors have banned or turned away Chinese exports including wheat gluten tainted with the chemical melamine, which has been blamed for dog and cat deaths in North America. Toxic monkfish and frozen eel and juice made with unsafe color additives have also been on the list of unacceptable products.