We import so much from China. Go to Wal-Mart and you’ll almost certainly leave with something that traveled across the ocean to your hands.
But I’ve never thought about chicken being one of those things. I’ve always just assumed that any chicken I buy at the grocery store is from America and likely from somewhere close, like Poca or the Harrison community. But that assumption may need some scrutiny. I read an article recently in The American Scholar, called “Here’s the beef with chicken from China,” written by James McWilliams and published Dec. 4. (You can Google that title and the author’s name and find the article.)
It must be noted, McWilliams, a Texas State University professor, wrote a book by the following name: “The Modern Savage: Our Unthinking Decision to Eat Animals.” Well, that’s surely a title destined to bring sharp divides in opinion.
All carnivore/herbivore debates aside, I didn’t realize until reading the article that imported Chinese chicken was part of a 2017 U.S. trade deal with China. I’d be willing to bet that many of you in the industry around here are fully aware of this, while I’d put money on those of you like me, who only enjoy chicken but don’t farm it, had no clue. This week, there’s a lot of media focus on new U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods, such as washing machines and solar panels. But chicken is also a big trade matter at the moment.
In the article, McWilliams writes: “Chinese-sourced chicken will almost certainly enter the food supply of the United States soon. Jim Sumner, president of the USA Poultry and Egg Export Council, told me to expect to see that happening sometime in 2018.”
I can’t say that thrills me. If it’s true, then as a consumer, I mostly just want to know the difference through proper labeling: Is this home-grown or Chinese? Basically, I want to know the country of origin of any food product I buy. I know bananas aren’t going to grow in Danielsville. But I don’t expect that. However, chicken seems different. If a chicken breast has crossed the ocean to reach my plate, it may be salad time for me. And if there’s no way to tell the difference, it may be salad time for me. Not meaning to annoy any chicken farmers, I’m just stating the truth about my dining preferences. I think it’s imperative that the U.S. market know what’s what.
Here’s an overview of the situation: A 2017 Trump administration trade deal with China opened the door for beef exports to China, which had banned U.S. beef since 2003 since a mad cow disease scare — apparently over just one cow in Washington state — in exchange for allowing cooked chicken to be exported from China to the U.S.
First, I wonder: why in the world did China lock out the American beef industry for so long over such a small scare? That seems like an overreaction. Anyway, beef industry leader Craig Uden expressed gratitude to the Trump Administration for getting American beef back to Chinese consumers.
“After being locked out of the world’s largest market for 13 years, we strongly welcome the announcement that an agreement has been made to restore U.S. beef exports to China,” said Uden, president of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, in a statement to NPR News last May. “It’s impossible to overstate how beneficial this will be for America’s cattle producers, and the Trump administration deserves a lot of credit for getting this achieved.”
According to McWilliams, the Chinese chicken is not expected to have a massive impact on the poultry industry, with one ag official estimating that two-to-three percent of the U.S. supply would be imported from China. The author noted that “even the National Chicken Council has celebrated the Trump deal, noting that ‘the low volume of trade is likely to have little effect on supply, demand, and prices.’”
So what’s the alarm? Well, the article points out that China isn’t exactly as up on food safety as the U.S. The Consumer Federation of America (CFA) isn’t too happy with the prospect of Chinese chicken on U.S. tables. And two-to-three percent of consumed U.S. chicken is still quite a lot of nuggets and chicken parmesan.
“In an August 15, 2017, letter to Secretary of Agriculture George ‘Sonny’ Perdue, it (the CFA) notes that ‘China continues to experience high-profile food safety problems, and the country’s food safety system is in a state of flux.’ It cites ‘China’s ongoing saga of food safety scandals,’ ‘deep-seated problems that will only resolve slowly,’ ‘food safety catastrophes,’ and the familiar cases of ‘melamine poisoned babies’ and contaminated pet foods that ‘have been associated with the deaths of more than 1,140 dogs in the United States,’” wrote McWilliams.
There are a number of unsavory details in McWilliams’ article about the Chinese poultry industry. It’s pretty yucky. And I’m not going to list them. You can read the article for yourself if you choose. But I don’t feel eager to have their poultry enter our grocery stores. This nation is the top poultry-producing country in the world and Madison County is one of the top producing counties in the nation. I think we manage just fine on our own without any poultry imports.
Unfortunately, there is a growing trend to import more food in America. And if you want to understand the importance of maintaining American agriculture, here’s a fact to United States remember: America became a net food importer in 2005 (a first since USDA started keeping such a statistic in 1967). The author notes that our food imports have risen 35 percent since 2012. And he quotes the Alliance for American Manufacturing with these facts: the United States imports 78 percent of its tilapia, 70 percent of its apple juice, 43 percent of its processed mushrooms, and 23 percent of its garlic from China. The FDA admits that it “inspects or samples less than one percent of all regulated products seeking entry into the United States.”
Imported Chinese tilapia doesn’t surprise me. That’s why I rarely touch any fish or shrimp unless I’m by the sea and can get it fresh. But imported apple juice? That’s really surprising.
I read this article and wondered: Are we going to start having Chinese chicken at the supermarket? Are we going to know if it’s Chinese or American? Are we going to have assurances that Chinese poultry safety standards meet those of American business?
I intend to pay attention to this and seek more information. And I’m certainly interested in getting feedback from those around here in the ag community who surely have far more knowledge than me, a guy who merely saw an eye-opening article. I just had no clue about the prospect of Chinese chicken in our stores. And I thought it was worth sharing. It’s something I don’t want to be completely blind to. And I doubt you do either.
Zach Mitcham is editor of The Madison County Journal.
To comment, visit The Madison County Journal Facebook page or send a letter with your first and last name and town of residence to zach@mainstreetnews.com
