An initial 40 pigs imported in shipments by Hong Kong from the mainland of China were slaughtered and distributed recently in local markets before preliminary urine tests discovered the pork contained residues of veterinary drugs not seen in the city since 2012. The Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD), a unit of the Hong Kong…
Activists get timely crack at making CAFOs report pollution data
Hanor Companies is moving its headquarters to Enid, OK, from Wisconsin and several activists groups would like to see the pork producer pull out of North Carolina soon, too. They may get their wish as a federal court in North Carolina has decided to let a potentially game-changing lawsuit against an 8,000-pig farm go forward.…
Study: Lawsonia May Cause Pigs to Shed More Salmonella
Earlier this year, at least 152 people in Washington state were infected with multidrug-resistant Salmonella I 4,[5],12:i:- linked to pork produced by Kapowsin Meats. According to federal estimates, pork is the source of about 8 percent of Salmonella illnesses in the U.S. Scientists interested in finding ways to control Salmonella in pigs first want…
FSIS Posts List of Outlets in WA, AK, OR Where Recalled Whole Hogs Were Sent
USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) has posted a distribution list of 60 retail and distribution outlets in Washington state, Alaska, and Oregon which received whole hogs from Kapowsin Meats of Graham, WA. 
The product has been linked to a Salmonella outbreak that, as of Aug. 13, had sickened 134 people in WA and…
New Book Explores Food Safety and the True Cost of Cheap Meat
Reading “The Chain: Farm, Factory and the Fate of Our Food,” a new book from journalist Ted Genoways, one begins to wonder who is treated better: the millions of hogs consumed in America each year, or the people who work on the farms and in the factories that breed and slaughter them. The easiest conclusion…
Nonprofits Sue FDA Claiming Agency Hasn’t Proven Safety of Animal Growth Drug
A trio of food safety and environmental advocacy groups Thursday filed suit against the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, saying the agency has not sufficiently proven that ractopamine, a drug fed to pigs, cattle and turkey, is safe for animals, humans who eat them, or the environment. Ractopamine, a beta-agonist, increases the rate at which …
Denmark Sees Small Increase in Animal Antibiotic Use
Denmark’s latest numbers on the country’s antimicrobial use and resistance are in. The total consumption of antimicrobial agents by the country’s animals in 2013 was about 128 tons — a 4-percent increase over the previous year. According to the new DANMAP (Danish Antimicrobial Resistance Monitoring and Research Program) report, the increase is mainly attributed…
Virus Scare Causes Russia to Suspend U.S. Pig Imports
Concerned over the spread of of Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea virus (PEDv) in U.S. pig populations, Russia announced last week it was suspending U.S. imports of live pigs effective May 30, Reuters reports. The disease has already killed roughly 10 percent of the U.S. pig population and is reportedly spreading across other countries such as…
NYT Editorial Weighs in on USDA IG Report on Pig Slaughter
The New York Times editorial board on Monday weighed in on a U.S. Department of Agriculture Inspector General report on pig slaughter, a month after the report was issued. “In the United States, there are some 8,600 federal meat inspectors working in 6,300 packing and processing plants. Their task is daunting: visual and manual inspection…
More Than 13,000 Dead Pigs Turn Up in Shanghai Waters
More than 13,000 dead pigs have been fished out of rivers in and near Shanghai, renewing concerns about animal disease and water safety in China, according to the South China Morning Post. The paper reported that among those carcasses found, 9,500 of them were retrieved from the Huangpu River, which is a major source of…
China: Antibiotic Resistant Bacteria Found in Pig Manure
Manure from Chinese pig farms contains both antibiotic residues and high concentrations of bacteria that are resistant to antibiotics, a new study published Monday by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The study adds to evidence that antibiotics used by China’s pork producers pose health risks. 
The study, led by the Chinese Academy…