JBS USA to produce pork without growth drug to increase exports to China

JBS USA will remove a Beijing-banned growth drug from its US pork supply, accelerating competition for pork exports as China struggles with a devastating pig disease.

The meat packer’s move away from the drug ractopamine, a food additive, shows how companies are maneuvering to take advantage of an expected shortage in China, the world’s largest pork consumer, due to African swine fever (ASF).

JBS USA, owned by Brazil’s JBS SA, said it removed ractopamine from internally owned production systems in August 2018. The company will now also ban the drug from the diets of pigs owned by farmers who sell animals to JBS USA.

The Colorado-based JBS unit sells pork under brands such as Swift and Swift Premium.

Rival US pork producer Smithfield Foods [SFII.UL], owned by China’s WH Group, already raises all pigs on its own and contracted farms without the drug.

“We are confident that this decision will bring long-term benefits to our producer partners and our industry by ensuring that US pork products are able to compete fairly on the international market,” JBS USA said in an emailed statement.

Ractopamine is used in some countries to raise leaner pigs, but China does not allow its use or tolerate residues in imported meat. The European Union also prohibits ractopamine.

Beijing recently blocked imports of pork from a Canadian company because China’s customs agency said a shipment contained ractopamine.

Source: Reuters

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