Beijing has blocked beef shipments from JBS’s plant in Colorado due to the presence of ractopamine, a feed additive. JBS, the world’s largest beef producer, is working with authorities to resolve the issue. The suspension came into effect on Monday and only impacts the Greeley plant. Ractopamine is banned or restricted in many countries, including China. In a related move, China has also suspended meat and poultry exports from Cool Port Oakland in California.
Cool Port Oakland is a facility that specializes in storing perishable or sensitive goods, such as food and medicine, in cold storage. Despite a request for comment, the company did not provide a response on Wednesday.
According to a spokesperson from the USDA FSIS, China customs discovered ractopamine in a shipment of frozen beef omasum products exported from these establishments to China. As per regulations, the batch of products was destroyed. The USDA FSIS is currently conducting an investigation into the matter.
Earlier this year, several prominent organizations focused on food safety, environmental concerns, and animal rights filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. They are seeking to compel the FDA to reevaluate the approvals of ractopamine, as they believe it poses a risk to human health and causes distress in farm animals prior to slaughter.
Analysts have attributed the slump in Chicago Mercantile Exchange cattle futures on Wednesday to the imposed restrictions. The August live cattle contract, which is the most-active, experienced its largest percentage drop since May 1.