WASHINGTON -- U.S. companies and federal regulators appear to be ramping up efforts to address consumer concern about a spate of recalls on imports of everything from toothpaste to pet food.

Supermarket operators Supervalu and Safeway are posting signs in stores and giving workers talking points, while Winn-Dixie has a corporate team at the ready for any emerging tainted products issues.

TV ads from Safeway and the maker of Tylenol emphasize quality control and inspection of their products, while the Food & Drug Administration updated its Web site and shuffled its PR staff to deal with a crush of questions from the public.

The sheer number of products exported by China, which are often cheaper than U.S.-made goods, and a cultural divide on safety requirements makes the situation difficult. For every $1 in goods that the U.S. sells China, China sells the United States more than $5 in products.

Consumer Reports released a poll this week that said 92 percent of Americans think imported foods should be labeled by the country of origin. The telephone survey included 1,004 interviews and was conducted over four days last month.

Required country-of-origin labeling was included in a farm bill approved five years ago, but Congress has repeatedly pushed back the deadline for all products except seafood.

Yet the public's growing concerns could trigger action. The FDA assigned nearly a third of its 21-member communications team for more than a month to address questions about the pet food recall. The deaths of dozens of dogs and cats nationwide have been linked to imported pet food containing Chinese wheat gluten tainted with the chemical melamine.

The FDA also started holding twice-a-week teleconferences, partly because it does not have money for national media ads.

The agency has received more than 18,000 phone calls on pet food compared with an annual average of about 5,000 total calls.

"We rarely spend that much time with the media on a single issue … but it was evolving and a press release was not adequate," FDA spokesman Doug Arbesfeld said.

More than 5 million people visited a Web site dedicated to the issue in April alone and consumers appear to trust the agency's information since its recall pages routinely top searches done using Google Inc.'s engine, Arbesfeld said.

"I check product labels a little bit more" since the pet food and toothpaste recalls, said Michael Bentkofsky, an engineer carrying his 2-year-old son into the Shoppers Food & Pharmacy in Falls Church, Va.

U.S. authorities have recalled or turned away Chinese exports including toxic fish, juice containing unsafe color additives and toy trains decorated with lead paint in recent months, requiring increased coordination among regulators.

The FDA worked with the Agriculture Department on the pet food case, coordinates with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on food sickness issues, and routinely works onsite with Customs and Border Protection, Arbesfeld said.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission also works with Customs to identify products that need inspection, said Julie Vallese, a spokeswoman.

The CPSC has recalled roughly 270 products this year, about 60 percent of which were made in China. It has been working directly with Chinese manufacturers since 2005 to ensure they understand U.S. safety regulations and that "you can't pick and choose when to adhere," Vallese said.

"When the U.S. says you met that safety regulation, it's not just lip service," Vallese said, adding that the Chinese are paying more attention.

China's Vice Health Minister Wang Longde Friday said new laws were needed to strengthen food safety supervision by coordinating the duties of its competing regulatory agencies.

This week, Zheng Xiaoyu, the former head of China's food and drug watchdog, was executed for approving untested medicine in exchange for cash.

Barbara Dyer, a retired computer scientist leaving the Falls Church Shoppers store on Tuesday said Xiaoyu's execution reflects that China is "worried about its reputation abroad."

Target Corp., the nation's second-largest discount retailer, would comment only on product safety and said it requires vendors to use an approved third party to test samples of toys and other products during different phases of production.

"We are aware of the concerns regarding products coming from China and are looking into the situation," said an e-mail from spokeswoman Lena Michaud.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the world's largest retailer, and Kroger Co., the nation's largest traditional supermarket chain, did not return repeated requests for comment.

DentFresh fluoride mint toothpaste, made in China, is being recalled

Dent Fresh U.S.A. Inc. is recalling all of its DentFresh fluoride mint toothpaste, made in China, because the product may contain diethylene glycol, a chemical found in antifreeze, which is toxic to the kidneys and liver. No injuries or illnesses have been reported, but the toothpaste should be thrown away or returned immediately to the store where it was purchased. Any reactions should be reported to the Food and Drug Administration's MedWatch adverse event reporting program at www.fda.gov/medwatch/report.htm. Details: by phone at 305-677-9938; by e-mail at denfresh@hotmail.com.

- Associated Press