Senator Urges Obama to Press China on Meat Exports
US - Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa has urged the White House to press China to accept U.S. pork and beef based on sound science and trade rules.
22 July 2009
1 minute read
Grassley also urged Administration officials, when meeting with a visiting delegation from China next week as part of the Strategic and Economic Dialogue, to raise the issue of China's continued barriers to exports of U.S. pork and beef. "These scientifically unfounded barriers negatively impact producers in my home state of Iowa," Grassley wrote.
"China bans imports of U.S. pork due to alleged concerns about the H1N1 virus. Yet according to the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE), the World Health Organization, and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the H1N1 virus is not transmitted through food.
"China also prohibits imports of U.S. beef due to alleged concerns over bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE). Yet, the OIE recognizes that U.S. boneless and bone-in beef derived from cattle of all ages can be traded safely due to safeguards undertaken by the United States."
TheCattleSite News Desk
