30 Jun 2020
China suspends bulk of Dutch pork imports after COVID-19 outbreaks
Read full article
Read full article
Share on twitter
AMSTERDAM (Reuters) – China has halted almost all imports of pork from the Netherlands, apparently motivated by COVID-19 outbreaks at some of the largest Dutch slaughterhouses.
China banned meat delivered by four of the largest Dutch abattoirs as of Sunday, Dutch government spokeswoman Elise van den Bosch said on Tuesday.
China gave no specific reason for the June 28 ban, but workers at all of the four abattoirs have recently been infected with the new coronavirus, she said.
“Clearly, China is looking for the source of its second wave of COVID-19 infections, which they might feel could come from imported meat”, Van den Bosch said.
“But there is no scientific evidence for the possible transmission of the virus through food or packaging materials.”