Shuanghui’s US acquisition highlights pork war

Shuanghui International’s $7.1 billion deal to buy Smithfield Foods in the US has been widely billed as a response to China’s repeated food scares, but American companies actually have to follow higher standards to be able to export pork to the mainland.

The bone of contention is a controversial food additive called ractopamine. It is used to make pigs grow faster, leaner and cheaper, but the effect on humans is not well understood and is claimed by some to pose a risk. It is banned in China, Russia and the EU, but not in the US, where for the past decade it has been widely used in feed...