Guangzhou's animal health and food safety authorities are to launch a two-week campaign from today to crack down on the illegal use of drugs in pig rearing and the way tuna fish sashimi is treated.
The campaign - intended to avoid food poisoning cases during the Labour Day holidays - will target pigs and pork produced in Hunan , a main supplier to Hong Kong, and tuna fish sashimi imported from Taiwan.
An epidemic prevention official in Guangzhou, Fang Chenggang, said Hunan farmers used the drug clenbuterol to increase the lean meat on pigs, while tuna was often treated with carbon monoxide to improve its appearance.
A report in the Guangzhou-based Information Times claimed the use of carbon monoxide in tuna was widespread among retailers and shops in Guangzhou. The report said although the malpractice would not make consumers sick, it would make it harder to differentiate between fresh and older tuna.
Small amounts of clenbuterol, when ingested, can cause sleepiness and muscle cramps in humans, while bigger amounts can increase heart rate, cause palpitations and aggravate the conditions of people with high blood pressure, cardiac disease or asthma.
Ingestion of excessive levels of carbon monoxide is harmful to the kidneys.