A recent US provision that effectively blocks China's poultry exports to
the country leaves an impression that it was "made on political grounds," a top
American poultry industry representative said yesterday.
Decisions must be made "on the basis of sound science politics really has no
place in it..." James H. Sumner, president of the U.S. Poultry & Egg Export
Council and head of the International Poultry Council, told senior Chinese
quarantine officials in Beijing.
"China must be given fair consideration," he stressed.
He was commenting on an act passed by the U.S. House of Representatives
earlier this month.
According to the bill, "none of the funds made available in this Act may be
used to establish or implement a rule allowing poultry products to be imported
into the United States from the People's Republic of China".
"The last thing we need is something like this to get in the way of our
mutual progress as long as (Chinese) products reach the standards, nobody should
stand in the way," Sumner said.
He expressed concern that "politicians who don't understand the principles of
free trade" may come to severely undermine the US export trade.
He made the remarks during an unexpected visit to "show support" to China's
poultry industry, only days before a bilateral food safety summit between the
two countries scheduled in Washington DC.
In an Aug. 31 letter to the U.S. House Agricultural Appropriations Committee,
he explicitly called for "calmer minds and careful voices" to resolve current
disputes.
Sumner brought along with him similar letters from five American companies,
which together represent 75 percent of US chicken production and 80 percent of
its exports.
"This is good evidence that the entire (U.S. poultry) industry supports the
statements I've made," he said, adding that China's "willingness and commitment
to work together" has been highly appreciated.
Earlier, the Chinese poultry industry condemned the U.S. act on the ground
that it "violated basic rules of the World Trade Organization and is against the
principles of fair trade".
China is the world's largest meat producer and the second largest poultry
producer, after the United States.