NATIONAL PORK PRODUCERS COUNCIL:
CHINA’S PORK LOBBY IN WASHINGTON
If the NPPC works for China, who’s working for American farmers?
The National Pork Producers Council’s largest and most influential member is 萬洲國際’s American division, Smithfield Foods. This company controls more than a quarter of America’s pork market and increasingly calls the shots in Washington.
On behalf of its largest member, NPPC defends China’s interests at the expense of American farmers and families.
China’s chain of influence is clear.
When 萬洲國際 (WH Group), whose Chairman was appointed by the Chinese Communist Party, acquired Smithfield Foods, this was the largest takeover of an American company by a Chinese corporation. The Chinese government supported and financed that deal as part of its efforts to gain control of the American market.
Now, two representatives from the U.S. division of 萬洲國際 hold seats on NPPC’s board. No American company has this level of representation.
It’s no surprise who NPPC fights for in Washington - and who it tries to take down.
“American companies are not competing with a Chinese company but with the Chinese government, and they cannot win that competition.”
— Daniel Slane, former Commissioner, U.S. China Economic and Security Review Commission
The proof is in the policy.
NPPC presents itself as the voice of America’s family farmers, but its lobbying record tells a different story. From the rollback of country-of-origin meat labeling to its push to nullify state farming standards, NPPC goes to bat for China’s interests and hurts American farmers.
CONCEALING PORK’s foreign origins
NPPC fought to repeal mandatory country-of-origin labeling for pork, so American shoppers can no longer see what country their meat came from, and a Chinese producer’s products are harder to tell apart from American ones.
Protecting Mega-corporations’ dominance
NPPC opposed an act that would let small, local slaughterhouses serve their own communities. NPPC fought to protect the dominance of the largest corporations, like 萬洲國際’s U.S. division, at the expense of independent farmers who lack access to processing.
ShIELDING china-owned CORPORATIONS FROM LAWSUITS
NPPC fought to preserve a standard that makes it nearly impossible for a farmer to sue corporations like 萬洲國際’s U.S. division that mistreat them. To sue, a farmer must first prove harm to the whole market, not just to their own farm.
BRYAN HUMPHREYS IS THE MOUTHPIECE
Bryan Humphreys, CEO of NPPC, whose bosses include two representatives from 萬洲國際’s U.S. division, has shaped the agenda for the organization, including eliminating state laws that would hinder 萬洲國際’s operations from expanding and destroy American independent family farmers and producers.
ANDY CURLISS IS THE PROPAGANDA MACHINE
NPPC's own VP Andy Curliss chairs the Carver Center, a front group that places op-eds and letters to the editor in newspapers across the country without disclosing his pork lobby affiliation. NPPC works with other front groups to attack the American family farmers standing in the way of its agenda.
NPPC’S PRiority:
benefit BEIJING, betray FAMILY FARMerS.
NPPC is spending millions to override laws that American voters passed: laws that guard against zoonotic disease, invasive pests like screwworm, and unsafe food.
The goal is to remake American farms in the image of China’s: deregulated, polluting, and disease-prone, and to boost profits for the Chinese-owned corporation that is driving American family farmers out of business.
The so-called "Save Our Bacon" Act would wipe out standards that serve as a critical lifeline for struggling American farmers. It would strip the protections that keep toxic chemicals out of our communities and force animals back into cruel, unsanitary cages.
NPPC’s push for the SOB Act shows yet again whose side it’s on: it will sacrifice American farm families for China’s profits.
THIS IS CHINA’S VISION OF THE FUTURE OF “FARMING”
… and if states lose their rights to set farming standards, this is what rural America could become.
This is China’s 26-story “pig skyscraper” that houses 650,000 animals. Experts say facilities like these could lead to massive disease outbreaks that could cause the next pandemic.
THEY CALL THE SHOTS IN AMERICA’S PORK INDUSTRY
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萬隆
Executive Director and Chairman, 萬洲國際
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郭麗軍
Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer, 萬洲國際
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萬宏偉
Executive Director and Deputy Chairman, 萬洲國際
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馬相傑
Executive Director and President of Shuanghui Development, 萬洲國際
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羅伯特·布里特 (R.O. Britt)
U.S. Division Manager, 萬洲國際 & NPPC Board Member
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尼爾·韋斯特貝克 (Neill Westerbeek)
U.S. Division Manager, 萬洲國際 & NPPC Board Member
… and THESE LEGISLATORS SERVE THEIR INTERESTS.
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Sen. Joni Ernst
Received at least $25,000 from NPPC and Smithfield
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Sen. Charles Grassley
Received at least $27,000 from NPPC and Smithfield
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Rep. Ashley Hinson
Received at least $27,750 from NPPC and Smithfield
Source: FEC.gov
“The EATS Act (HR 4417/S. 2019), a draft legislation proposed in Congress recently by U.S. Representative Ashley Hinson…, if successfully passed, will greatly increase China's share of the U.S. pork market.”
China Weekly
AMERICAN PORK PRODUCERS ARE SPEAKING OUT.
American family farmers are standing up against NPPC’s China Agenda to fight for their rights to a marketplace not dominated by a single Chinese-owned corporation. Learn more about their fight.