December 31, 2015
Chinese firms caught selling food waste as pig feed
Two companies dealing in kitchen waste collecting and treatment are being investigated for selling food waste illegally to swine farms, the Shanghai Greenery and Public Sanitation Bureau and Shanghai Urban Management and Law Enforcement Bureau said.
A report by Shanghai Television Station (STV) claimed the two companies, Shanghai Sanyi Sanitation Co and Shanghai Zhongqi Environment Technology, which collect wastes from fast food chains in the city, illegally sold some of them as feed to pig farms.
According to local regulations, kitchen wastes cannot be used as livestock feed and violators face a fine of up to 30,000 yuan (US$4,838).
Urban management officials had earlier busted an unlicensed waste sorting station of Sanyi in Songjiang District and seized two trucks carrying wastes to pig farms. Sanyi collects rubbish from several KFC outlets in Songjiang District.
A worker at the illegal station revealed that "pigs can grow one kilogram per day after eating these wastes," and added, "they are the best feed for them."
The STV report said a tonne of sorted kitchen waste sells for 600 yuan (US$96.76).
