Food safety top concern for Chinese poultry producers

She Feng, president of the China Broiler Alliance, is convinced that industrialization of the Chinese poultry industry should be promoted. 
The Chinese poultry industry is still struggling with the consequences of the past food scandals that have impacted it since 2012, but there is a light at the end of the tunnel. More than 220 poultry producers gathered September 20-21 during the 3rd International Poultry Forum China in Beijing, organized by WATT Global Media and Shanghai LyJa Cultural Media Co., to discuss solutions for this problem and many others.
Speakers at the International Poultry Forum agreed that globalization is having an impact, so they need to work harder to educate the public to eliminate misunderstandings and to raise the interest in positive advertising on behalf of the industry.
Chinese poultry industry needs to act on opportunities
But the situation goes beyond that. She Feng, general manager of Beijing Huadu Group Co. and chairman of the China Broiler Alliance (CBA), said that they were there “to discuss the Chinese broiler industry, which has shown a very rapid development in recent years.” Chicken ranks second after pork as the most- consumed meat in China, and chicken has been showing a strong demand. “Broiler producers should take advantage of this opportunity,” said She, but “we need to work out solutions to eradicate problems, fight diseases and build a new CBA.”.
Preparation for risks to poultry industry crucial
Wang Zongli, deputy director of the Animal Husbandry Department, Chinese Ministry of Agriculture, said that it is “crucial to be fully prepared for risks in the future.”
Apart from the food safety scandals, the Chinese poultry industry is also recovering from the H7N9 avian influenza scare, but there is a lot of room for improvement, and producers are hoping to accelerate the recovery.
The Chinese government is also being instrumental in this process. For instance, there is a “high investment in the Animal Disease Control Center established in 2004,” said Yang Lin, officer of the center, with enough staff for all the required tasks. The government has established animal disease control systems from production to slaughter, and it is being more cooperative with international organizations such as the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) and World Health Organization (WHO), among others.
Animal health is of particular interest to producers in China, since investment in veterinary medicine for one chicken is 10 times higher than in the U.S.
The industry is aware of all of the many problems that affect them, including environmental protection, export markets and consumer awareness.