China suspends US meat exporter over food safety issue

The customs authority in China has revoked the right of exporting beef from a company in the US on Thursday due to a breach of safety standards, the General Administration of Customs announced. 

The US-based King Meat Service Inc has been suspended to sell beef to China after ractopamine was detected in its arrived shipments, according to an official statement from the administration. 

The decision for this suspension has been delivered to USDA. 

Ractopamine was banned in China since December 2011. 

Any meat product that contains the chemical violates the food safety law in China, and the seller could face export suspension. 

The US is the fifth largest beef exporter to China this year, having shipped more than 80,000 tons in the first half of 2022.