Source:  Tom Johnston, MEATINGPLACE.COM, 8/5/09

China has de-listed three U.S. pork and two U.S. poultry plants, according to USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service.

Effective Aug. 3, the following facilities are suspended from exporting product to China:

• Smithfield Packing Co., Tar Heel, N.C.
• John Morrell & Co., Sioux City, Iowa
• Seaboard Foods, Guymon, Okla.
• Equity Group-Ky. Division, Albany, Ky.
• Mountaire Farms-Delmarva, Selbyville, Del.

FSIS spokesman Brian Mabry told Meatingplace the suspensions stem from what China said were "multiple detections" of "chemical drug residues and epidemic pathogens."

"Details are still being translated, so we have no further information at this time," Mabry said in an e-mail.

Meanwhile, Mexico has suspended imports from pork and deli meats purveyor Heritage Acres Foods LLC, Pleasant Hope, Mo.

"The facility had been delisted earlier this year in May 2009," Mabry said. "They were relisted in June 2009. On July 21, 2009, Mexican authorities examining products from this facility found critical deficiencies in two separate loads at two separate entry ports. This caused them to be delisted again."

For more stories, go to www.meatingplace.com.