July 18, 2007

US urges China to lift pork and poultry ban on seven companies

The US has asked China to lift the ban it imposed last week on imports from seven pork and poultry processing plants.

In a letter sent to the Chinese authorities, the US Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) has requested test results and scientific information that would justify the restrictions, The Financial Times reported.

China's General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine banned the products on the basis that salmonella was found in frozen chicken meat from Tyson Foods, while growth enhancers and anti-parasite drug residues were found in frozen chicken feet from Sanderson Farms.

Frozen pork ribs from Cargill Meat Solutions were also banned, along with salted pig innards from Triumph Foods.

According to American Meat Institute (AMI), an industry body, all raw agricultural products can contain low levels of bacteria, including salmonella, but this is allowed under USDA rules.

Patrick Boyle, president of the American Meat Institute said US food safety standards are among the most stringent in the world and China's actions were "inconsistent with the best available science".

China's ban was widely seen as a tit-for-tat move for the US ban on five of its major seafood products and the much hype in the US media questioning the safety of various Chinese products following the pet food scandal.

China's ban also comes at a time when there is a pork shortage in the country which has driven prices up at least 30 percent nationwide.

China's US pork imports were up 51.3 percent in the first five months of 2007, compared to the same time period in 2006.