Pigs get bar codes to improve pork safety

Beijing citizens will be able to check the provenance of pork after purchase at a number of supermarkets from Wednesday, said an officer from the Beijing Municipal Commission of Commerce Saturday.

Supermarkets providing the service include 18 Carrefour and 46 Chaoshifa supermarkets, the Beijing Times reported Sunday.

The pigs can be traced from transportation to slaughter by using a bar code at the supermarkets, through mobile phones or online, said Yan Xiaoyan, deputy director of the commission at a government meeting.

"The systems are in use at the city's main slaughter houses including Wuruolian and Pengcheng," an employee surnamed Gao from the system provider Beijing ZHD laser company told the Global Times Sunday.

"Instead of stamping the traditional blue mark, the new system stamps a laser code, which contains the required qualifications from commerce and agriculture departments for the pigs after they are slaughtered," Gao said.

The blue marks can be faked, but it is extremely difficult to fake the laser code, she noted.

The system will cover all the swine slaughter houses, wholesale markets and supermarkets in Beijing within two years, the report said.

"Implementing this tracking system is useful to ensure food safety," said Nan Qingxian, former Dean of the College of Food Science & Nutritional Engineering at China Agricultural University.

Whether a pig is slaughtered by individuals or at regulated factories can be identified.

"Privately slaughtered swine may not be trustworthy as people can inject water into pork."

However, according to the Beijing Times report, so far the system is not effective in tracking where and by whom the pigs were raised.

"Some animal diseases, and problems caused by pig feed may occur at the breeding stage," Nan noted.