The Chinese government has announced a temporary ban on all exports of Canadian meat to China. According to a statement on the Chinese embassy’s website, customs authorities had detected ractopamine residue in a shipment of pork products from Frigo Royal. A subsequent investigation revealed that a total of 188 veterinary health certificates attached to Canadian shipments were counterfeit.
“In order to protect the safety of Chinese consumers, China has taken urgent preventive measures and requested the Canadian government to suspend the issuance of certificates for meat exported to China since June 25,” the statement said. “We hope the Canadian side would attach great importance to this incident, complete the investigation as soon as possible and take effective measures to ensure the safety of food exported to China in a more responsible manner.”