New food safety scandal rocks Henan Province pork industry
Beijing. March 16. INTERFAX-CHINA - Jiyuan Shuanghui Food Co., Ltd. (Jiyuan Shuanghui), a Henan Province-based meat processor and distributor, knowingly sold pork tainted with clenbuterol, a banned substance, state media reported March 15.
Jiyuan Shuanghui's Purchasing Manager Song Hongliang told China Central Television (CCTV) that the company offered higher prices for pigs fed with clenbuterol, which produces leaner meat.
The Ministry of Agriculture (MOA) and Ministry of Health jointly banned the use of clenbuterol in food production in 2002.
In 2006, however, several hundred people in Shanghai were reportedly poisoned by clenbuterol-tainted pork.
Jiyuan Shuanghui is a subsidiary of Henan Shuanghui Investment Development Co., Ltd. (Henan Shuanghui), China's largest producer of chilled processed meats. In 2007, U.S. investment bank Goldman Sachs acquired a stake in Henan Shuanghui for an undisclosed sum.
Trading of Henan Shuanghui's shares on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange was suspended on March 16 after the company launched an investigation into the allegations. Its shares on March 15 fell by the daily limit of 10 percent to RMB 77.94 ($11.86).
Meanwhile, the Henan provincial government on March 15 ordered 16 pig farms within its borders to stop selling livestock. The local government also seized feed supplies suspected of containing clenbuterol. The MOA also said March 15 that it would send inspectors to Jiyuan Shuanghui's facilties for inspection.
Henan Province is a leading meat processing base in China.
- LX
