Tuesday 30 June 2015
Most of the out-of-date frozen meat found in China from United States
Expired frozen meat smuggled into China, sometimes decades old, is mainly old food reserves from the United States and is distributed to smaller cities around the country before it is sold to food stalls and small restaurants, according to a newspaper report.
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Most of the out-of-date frozen meat found in China from United States
Mimi Lau, SCMP
30 June 2015
Expired frozen meat smuggled into China, sometimes decades old, is mainly old food reserves from the United States and is distributed to smaller cities around the country before it is sold to food stalls and small restaurants, according to a newspaper report.
State media reported last week that expired frozen meat was smuggled into mainland China via Hong Kong, with some of its packaging dating to the 1970s and 1980s.
Expired beef from India was also exported to Vietnam and then smuggled into the Guangxi region of southern China for distribution to other areas of the country, the reports said.
Chinese police busted 21 gangs in June for smuggling frozen meat products in 14 provinces, state television reported.
The Beijing News, citing an unidentified source in the beef trade, said most of this old frozen meat smuggled into China was formerly foreign strategic food reserves, mostly from the United States.
Most countries freeze large amounts of meat as food reserves and to stabilise prices, but the produce is later discarded when it is too old, the report said.
“Domestic regulations stipulate frozen beef and lamb expires after eight to 12 months and it should not be defrosted after that, but the international practice is generally two years,” Gao Guan, the deputy secretary of the China Meat Association, was quoted as saying.
Most of the expired meat smuggled into the country is found in second and third tier cities in China, The Beijing News said.
“After an extended period of refrigeration, the surface of beef has already oxidized and darkens. It’s not suitable for consumer sale, but it tastes almost no different from normal beef after it was marinated and pan and deep fried,” said the source in the meat trade.
The report said the cost of storage overseas, including electricity for refrigeration, costs only the equivalent of about 17 yuan (HK$21.50) a year per tonne, citing an unnamed customs official source.
A raid in Changsha in Hunan province last October found over 25 tonnes of pork stomach, chicken feet and pork knuckles about two years old.
“After smuggling from Hong Kong, [expired meat] is mainly sold to small restaurant in cities in Yunnan, Guizhou and Sichuan provinces,” said another source.
“Expired frozen meat doesn’t come with an inspection report so normally distribution will skip big cities like Beijing and Shanghai,” the source was quoted as saying.
A meat smuggling scandal was exposed in Russia in 2010 when 30-year-old frozen meat from the United States, Brazil, Belgium and Canada was smuggled into the country via Ukraine.
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