New Zealand says it has not been notified by Chinese authorities about COVID-19 in its meat

New Zealand reported on Monday that it had not been aware of any problems with its exports of frozen meat after the Chinese authorities had stated that the coronavirus had been detected in its beef products. Over the weekend, the Chinese city of Jinan said it had discovered COVID-19 in beef and tripe from Brazil, Bolivia and New Zealand on their packaging, while two other provincial capitals had discovered it on the packaging of Argentine pork.

"New Zealand was not officially told by the Chinese authorities about this the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade said in a statement. "The officials of New Zealand are now trying to determine the sources and veracity of these leaks." To get any details of the company just do company search NZ here. Authorities in Jinan, the capital of Shandong Province in eastern China, said that the products concerned were imported by Guotai International Group Unit 002091.SZ and Shanghai Zhongli Production Trade. In Shanghai, they entered via ports, they said.

In an interview on state broadcaster TVNZ on Monday, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said she had been told it was not New Zealand's beef that had COVID-19 in it. Ardern said, "We've been told that it's Argentine beef, so we're only trying to get to the bottom of what's recorded there." Last week, China, the world's biggest buyer of beef, discovered the coronavirus on Argentine beef packaging in Shandong and Jiangsu, and on Brazilian beef packaging in Wuhan.

After discovering the virus in imported goods, China has ramped up testing on frozen foods, prompting import bans, even though the World Health Organization has said the risk of catching COVID-19 from frozen foods is minimal.