Canada has
sold more pork to China than has the United States during the first quarter
this year.
That’s
only happened a few times before, reports the Globe and Mail.
“Rising
affluence is driving China’s voracious appetite for pork, including parts of
the pig – feet, elbows, innards – which command little value in most countries,”
the newspaper reports.
At the
same time, tightened environmental standards in China have forced farm closures
and boosted demand for cheaper imports.
But
there are some worries now because a shipment from Olymel flunked China’s test
for residues of ractopamine (Paylean) which is banned in Canada and China, but
allowed in the U.S.
About
half of U.S. herds have gone off ractopamine in an effort to secure exports to
China, including Smithfield Foods; Seaboard Foods, a division of Seaboard Corp;
and Triumph Foods, a hog farmer cooperative. They are the biggest three in the
U.S.
