The Beijing Organizing Committee for the Games of the XXIX
Olympiad (BOCOG) has denied reports that pigs being reared for meat
during the Games are meanwhile living a life of luxury.
Yang Yanyun, chairman of Luck Crane, the Games' sole authorized
pork supplier, is alleged to have said his animals were being
immunized with natural herbs and Chinese medicines, were given two
hours' exercise per day, and were being raised in special breeding
centers far away from areas with high air or water pollution.
However, on Friday, the BOCOG said in a report on its website
that the "special rearing methods" boasted about by the pork
supplier were false.
The report said the organizers had issued a warning to the
supplier about the misleading information, but did not name the
company.
The report went on to say it was possible some companies had
developed new breeding methods or upgraded their supply chains to
improve their business ... "But it is very wrong if they tried to
say these things were done for the Olympics. They are manipulating
people's feelings about the Games to improve their brand
image."
Interviews featuring Yang flooded the Internet in August.
He was quoted as saying his company does not use growth hormones
in pig rearing as it could conceivably cause athletes to fail
anti-doping tests.
In addition, he said his pig feed was free of preservatives and
that the immunization methods used on the hogs included natural
herbs and Chinese medicine.
His 'Olympic pigs' also received two hours' exercise a day to
keep them healthy, he said.
The BOCOG report said all farm products produced for the Games
were part of the same food supply chain used to feed the people of
Beijing.
"There is no need to raise 'Olympic pigs' for the Games, as
currently 97 percent of the branded pork products in Beijing meet
the food safety standard," the report said.
(China Daily November 4, 2007)