This may seem like a repeat of the story I posted back in September, but it’s not. At that time, our USDA agreed to allow China to process American-raised chickens, then ship the chicken back to the USA.
As disturbing as this seemed, it was limited to processed chicken, not fresh. But now the USDA is planning to approve importing Chinese-raised and slaughtered poultry too. From CBS News New York:
Chicken from China has officials on alert, including U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.)
As WCBS 880’s Jim Smith reported Sunday, Schumer said first, the U.S. Department of Agriculture only allowed chickens that had been processed in China to be sold in the U.S. Now, he said the USDA plans to green-light poultry raised and slaughtered in China.This has never happened before, and it is a bad idea, Schumer argued.
“China has a terrible record on health safety, and chickens are one of the things that need the most care and inspections,” he said. Schumer called the plan a huge change in policy, and a big mistake.
“Why is the USDA doing it?” he said. “We just don’t know.”
As to whether the Chinese poultry slaughter system is equivalent to that of the U.S., the USDA said categorically that it is not.
I find this even more disturbing than I found the news about the Chinese-processed chicken a couple months ago.
Now is the time for American brands like Tyson and Perdue to loudly and proudly proclaim their commitment to offering only American-raised and slaughtered chickens. Both brands issued statements back in September that they had no plans to utilize Chinese chicken. And, any brands that utilize American chickens should do the same. I’m pretty sure every consumer concerned about this would thank them for it!
Read the entire article at NewYork.CBSlocal.com
soapboxtray says
I hope American companies do what you say, however there must be some push to have China do this… wonder where it stemmed from?
SouthernReverie says
Where is this coming from, you ask? Most of the money the USA has borrowed over the last few years is from China, and I would venture to guess that we owe them more than we could ever hope to pay back. We are now totally indebted to China. More than likely, this is part of the “payback.” I’m sure there will be many more deals like this one in the future. If China should decide they want to conquer the USA, they will be able to do so without a single shot fired.
suzanne lynn says
All the more reason to find a local farmer and buy directly from him!
hwendt12 says
would stay AS FAR AWAY from Chinese chickens as possible? All this does is open them up to INCREDIBLE lawsuits when people start getting really sick & die. As a US CEO, I’d be much more open to the idea of paying a little more to be assured that what I’m getting is REAL & SAFE. I’m sure that their legal departments and loss-prevention specialists will be in agreement as well.
cg1 says
I notice chicken is getting a lot of attention, but this is more wide ranging than one product, see Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) and the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP)
https://ecowatch.com/2013/07/01/obama-trade-agreements-threaten-food-safety-promote-gmos/
pattycakes says
Here’s another article relating to this:
https://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303559504579197662165181956
Tyson wouldn’t be investing millions in new facilities if they trusted the local market in China. But the FDA thinks we should trust them to be imported HERE?