China has suspended imports of pork from a plant owned by German meat company Toennies, Xinhua news agency reported on Thursday (18.06.2020).
The suspension comes a day after Toennies reported cases of COVID-19 among workers at his plant.
On Wednesday, June 17, the company said it had stopped slaughtering at one of its plants after nearly 400 employees tested positive for the coronavirus.
The General Administration of China Customs Updates List of Approved Meat Exporters on Thursday to say that the Toennies meat processing plant had been suspended.
Earlier this week, China strengthened inspections of meat imports after a surge in COVID-19 infections that were linked to a wholesale food market in Beijing.
The suspension of imports from the German plant could represent a risk for other exporters, including major suppliers to China, such as the United States and Brazil, where dozens of plants have had coronavirus outbreaks among workers.
«This now looks like a real risk factor for the US, Brazil or other exporters. Preventing a recurrence of COVID-19 takes priority over keeping it under control. "meat inflation", said Darin Friedrichs, senior analyst at INTL FCStone, in a note.
China's meat imports have increased this year, after a domestic deficit pushed pork prices to record levels.
Chinese customs said Thursday it had tested more than 30,000 samples of imported meat, seafood, vegetables and fruits between June 11 and June 17. All tested negative for the coronavirus.
With information from Xinhua and Reuters
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