Clenbuterol-tainted pork latest China food scandal

Henan Shuanghui Investment and Development Co. said it had halted operations at one of its subsidiaries while authorities investigate the case, in a statement to the Shenzhen Stock Exchange Wednesday, where it is listed.

In a separate statement dated Wednesday its parent Shuanghui Group expressed a “deep apology for the incident in the unit, which had troubled consumers.”

The news follows the 2008 milk scandal in which a chemical was found to have been added to watered-down milk, leading to the deaths of several babies and thousands sick. Products marketed under Shuanghui Group's Shineway brand were produced from pigs that were fed clenbuterol, an additive that can speed up muscle building and fat burning to produce leaner pork, the reports said.

The additive, known among farmers as “lean meat powder,” is banned in China because if eaten by humans it can lead to dizziness, heart palpitations and profuse sweating, the reports said.

The listed company said its shares were suspended Wednesday until official findings were released “to avoid a major impact on the company's stock price.”

“If it spreads to other producers, it will send shockwaves across the nation's meat industry, similar to the 2008 milk scandal,” Zhao Yong, an industry analyst with Haitong Securities, told the Global Times newspaper on Thursday.

As supermarkets pulled Shineway products from their shelves, the China Meat Association tried to play down the possibility that tainted pork was widespread.

“It's only an isolated case and was only found in one Shuanghui company. It won't bring destructive damage to either the industry or Shuanghui,” the industry association's spokesman, He Zhonghua, told the Global Times.

China reported 18 outbreaks of food-related clenbuterol poisoning between 1998 and 2007, according to a report on the Shanghai Food Safety website. One person died and more than 1,700 others fell ill, the website said.

The latest batch of tainted pork products was first reported by state broadcaster China Central Television earlier this week.

Subscribe to The China Post and save 25%. Click here

PrintEmail

Write a Comment

Terms

Enter your comments - 3000 characters max

Type in image code

Submit

 Receive China Post promos
 Respond to this email