September 18, 2006

Hundreds hospitalised in Shanghai after eating tainted pork

Close to 300 people in Shanghai were sickened after eating pork and pork organs believed to have been tainted with a banned animal feed additive, local media said Friday (Sep 18).

Most of the 278 people admitted into the hospital were treated and released on the same day but about a dozen remained under observation, the Shanghai Morning Post said.

Symptoms included dizziness, fatigue, a racing pulse and muscle spasms, the reports said.

Experts say the pork could possibly have been contaiminated with clenbuterol. Authorities were awaiting the result of laboratory tests on blood samples to confirm.

The pork is believed to have come from Haiyan Animal Slaughtering and Processing Plant in Zhejiang province and was sent to two stalls in a wholesale market before being distributed to 66 markets.

Authorities are scrambling to trace the meat and contacting sellers for a recall and has ordered the relevant stalls in the wholesale market to suspend its business.

Clenbuterol is used to help build muscle and is used as an illegal performance-enhancing drug by athletes.