The acquisition of Smithfield Foods by Shaunghui Holdings International was approved by the federal Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States last week according to the company. That committee reviews international business deals to determine any effect on national security. This acquisition will be the largest takeover of a U.S. company by a Chinese firm. The company will not be publicly traded after the deal is done. But one of Smithfield's shareholders, Starboard Value LP, said it plans to vote against the deal at a meeting scheduled for September 24, 2013. Food safety is not the concern of Starboard; that entity wants to make sure that shareholders get the best deal possible. Starboard says it has other written offers for a higher price. In July, a coalition of … [Read more...]
Audits of Chinese Plants Set to Export Cooked Poultry to U.S.
After the USDA announced that they were going to let Chinese facilities export processed poultry to the U.S., Food & Water Watch asked to see copies of the audit reports, which were not released. USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) posted the audits last Friday, and there are some serious issues in those plants. In the Qingdao Nine-Alliance Group, Shandong, auditors saw long electrical cords bundled with pieces of wire and repaired with electrical tape that made them difficult to clean. An air-line water trap was not closed and sealed, so its contents sprayed over the area. More problems with electrical cords were found in Zhueheng Waimao Co., Ltd/Shandong Delicate Food Co., Ltd, Zhueheng, Shandong, and at Weifang Legang Food Co. in Shandong, there were structural … [Read more...]
Food & Water Watch on FSIS Audit of Chinese Poultry Safety System
Last week, the USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service approved certain Chinese chicken processing facilities to export product to the United States. Their audit says that China's processed poultry inspection system safety system is equivalent to the U.S. system. The report states that "the Central Competent Authority (CCA) has adequately addressed all previously identified concerns. Therefore, the People's Republic of China's processed poultry inspection system meets the equivalence components for FSIS equivalence criteria." The People's Republic of China can now certify a list of establishments that are eligible to export heat treated and cooked poultry products to the U.S. The caveat is that this will be allowed as long as raw poultry is sourced from countries that FSIS has … [Read more...]
Coalition Urges Rejection of Smithfield Takeover by Chinese Company
Food and Water Watch has joined with other consumer and farm organizations to ask the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States to reject the proposed Shuanghui Holdings acquisition of Smithfield Foods. The proposed purchase was announced in May 2013. Signers of the letter include Center for Rural Affairs, Land Stewardship Project, Missouri Farmers Union, National Farmers Union, and R-CALF USA. The letter states the risks of food security, consumer food prices, food safety, and farm economies in the United States, along with national security. Tim Gibbons of the Missouri Rural Crisis Center said in a statement, "The White House should reject the sale of America's food supply. This proposed acquisition is a prime example of how expanded corporate consolidation in agriculture … [Read more...]
FSIS Announces Cut in Import Inspections Four Years Later
The USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) has published a notice in the Federal Register that it made a major change to the way it inspects countries that are eligible to export meat, poultry, and egg products to the U.S. The notice is Ongoing Equivalence Verifications of Foreign Regulatory Systems, Docket No. FSIS-2012-0049. Food & Water Watch has issued a press release about this action. They say that the announcement and accompanying public comment period regarding changes in this program are "too little, too late," since the change took place four years ago, at the beginning of the Obama Administration. Wenoah Hauter, executive director of Food & Water Watch, said, "It is time for the Obama administration to fund this vital consumer protection program … [Read more...]
FDA, China Agree to Cooperate on Food Safety
The FDA announced on December 11, 2012, that it has renewed an agreement with the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection, and Quarantine of China (AQSIQ) to enhance cooperation between the two countries on food safety. The original agreement was struck in 2007. The announcement extends the agreement for five more years. The agreement includes enhancement of FDA's ability to identify high-risk foods imported from China, collaboration to facilitate inspections of facilities that process and produce food, a focus on high-risk foods exported from China to the U.S., including pet foods, canned foods, and aquaculture, and the creation of processes for FDA to accept verified information about registration and certification. Last spring, the Chinese government refused to … [Read more...]
FDA Must Act On Chinese Dog Treats, Consumer Groups Say
Consumer advocates are urging the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to move swiftly to prevent any more pets from becoming sick or dying from tainted treats produced in China. Food & Water Watch and pet food safety advocates Mollie Morrissette and Susan Thixton asked FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg in a letter to take stronger actions on the issue and submitted a petition signed by nearly 18,000 consumers. “Since 2007, thousands of American dogs have fallen ill or died after eating jerky treats made in China,” said Wenonah Hauter, executive director of Food & Water Watch. “The FDA has shirked its responsibility to keep U.S. citizens and their pets safe, and it must step up and block these potentially deadly treats from harming more animals.” Over the last five … [Read more...]
Wenonah Hauter Rips FDA’s Probe Of Contaminated Dog Treats From China
Food and Water Watch's Wenonah Hauter says the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has failed to protect dogs from serious illness caused by contaminated jerky treats from China. In a scathing statement released Friday, Hauter, the organization's executive director, blasted the FDA's handling of a five-year probe of illnesses and deaths linked to chicken jerky dog treats from China. Since 2007, thousands of dogs have become sick or died after eating jerky treats made in China. This week, the FDA released heavily redacted reports of April inspections of Chinese manufacturing facilities and revealed that China refused to let inspectors collect samples for independent analysis."The FDA waited until it received 2,000 reports of illnesses and deaths in U.S. dogs before launching its … [Read more...]
