Tyson Foods: China suspended meat imports from the US food manufacturer

Tyson Foods, a leading meat processing and marketing company in the United States, has been suspended from exporting its products to China. The U.S. Department of Agriculture revealed earlier this week that Beijing ordered the suspension effective on Aug. 29.

According to Reuters, the halt affects Tyson Foods' meat processing plant in Logansport, Indiana. It was noted that China has also previously banned meat imports from several countries, and at that time, Chinese officials said it was due to concerns over the coronavirus even if most health experts worldwide said that the risk of spread through surfaces is low.

In the latest ban affecting Tyson Foods' Indiana plant, it was not explained by the USDA or the company why it needs to stop exporting to China. Rather, the Springdale, Arkansas-headquartered food company issued a statement to Reuters concerning the matter.

"We work closely with the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service to ensure that we produce all of our food in full compliance with government safety requirements," the company said. "We are confident our products are safe and we are hopeful consultations between the U.S. and Chinese governments will resolve this matter."

In any case, while there was no clear explanation of the export ban, Bloomberg reported that a notice was actually posted on the customs' webpage. Based on the note, the company failed inspection for some pig trotters. As a result, a suspension of exports to China has been put in place.

The restriction move follows China's temporary ban on shipments of raw meat products from two other food processing facilities in the U.S. in recent months. This ban was due to the presence of a feed additive called ractopamine in the meats. This substance is said to be commonly used in the country but banned in China; thus, the exports were halted.

Meanwhile, it was reported that this particular suspension of Tyson Foods' meat export to China does not have much effect on the meat trade between the U.S. and Beijing since there are still many American firms that are delivering their products to the Chinese land.