Results tagged “pork”

• Swine-Flu Warning Raised as Virus Crosses Continents [Bloomberg] "The World Health Organization, acknowledging the growing threat of swine flu, raised its global pandemic alert, saying the disease is no longer containable.The alarm level, raised to 4 from 3, is at its highest since the warning system was adopted in 2005, and the virus has been confirmed in the U.K., Mexico, the U.S., Canada and Spain."
• U.S. Warns China, Other Countries Not to Ban Pork [Fox News] "China and a string of other countries have moved to ban pork and other meat products from some U.S. states over the past week. The trend on Tuesday drew a rebuke from U.S. officials, who are warning trading partners that such embargoes could trigger "serious trading disruptions." The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other health organizations insist that the strain cannot be spread by food and that properly cooked pork is safe."
• Anise star spice amid flu scare, China minister says [Reuters] " Scared your favorite pork dish may harbor swine flu? China's Health Minister advises adding some star anise. The numbing spice is a key raw ingredient for Tamiflu, one of the main anti-virals used to treat swine flu, and is also a popular flavoring in Chinese cuisine."

Finally some good news that will make anyone in China rest assured that the food on our table is safe. The General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ) continues to be busy at work ensuring food safety for us all. After banning soy sauce and wasabi imported from three Japanese producers found to be tainted with toluene and ethyl acetate last month, AQSIQ has now withheld about 312 tonnes of Irish pork across the country, on global concerns that pork from Ireland contain potentially harmful levels of the cancer-causing agent dioxin. Even as many other countries are starting to ban Irish pork, this latest move by AQSIQ will hurt the Irish pork industry big time as China is a HUGE pork-consuming nation. Between September and now, China imported 2,047 tonnes of pork from Ireland.