福喜食品丑闻进一步扩大，五名责任人被控制

    各大新闻社本周三报道称，在对麦当劳（McDonald’s Corp）、肯德基（KFC）母公司百胜餐饮集团（Yum Brands Inc.）以及星巴克（Starbucks）等连锁快餐肉类供应商的调查中，中国警方拘留了五名相关人士。

    其中有涉及案件的上海福喜食品有限责任公司（Shanghai Husi Food Co. Ltd.）的领导。该公司是位于芝加哥的福喜集团（OSI Group）旗下公司。据新华社报道，福喜的质量部经理张晖在审讯中供认，公司“在高层领导的默许之下，多年来一直进行着违法生产。”

    上周末，东方卫视（Dragon TV）将这一丑闻曝光。节目指出，上海福喜将过期肉类与新鲜肉类混在一起，还在将掉在地上的肉饼装运发货。

    路透社报道称，上海消费者保护部门已经在福喜中国公司查封了超过1,000吨可疑产品，还在福喜的部分客户处封存了100吨产品。

    福喜集团在本周早些时候对此指控表示“震惊”，公司正在全面配合调查。

    OSI在网站发表声明称：“福喜集团管理层相信，本次事件是一起个体事件。集团愿为整个事件承担全部责任。”

    OSI的所有者及董事长谢尔登•拉文随后在周三发表声明，表示这起事件是“完全无法接受的”。

    他说：“我不会试图辩护或是寻找借口。如此可怕的错误发生在了我拥有的公司，这让我震惊无比。”

    百胜集团在一份电子邮件中声明：“福喜作为一家享有声誉的大型跨国企业，旗下公司竟然发生由管理人员主导、有组织实施的违法违规和不诚信行为，这令人难以置信和无法接受。”

    百胜表示已经停止向上海福喜的采购，并已安排其他供应商调货。此事不会影响中国肯德基餐厅的供应。不过，声明称必胜客（Pizza Hut）可能会“有少数产品临时断货”。

    在过去几天中，随着上海福喜的客户群浮出水面，丑闻的波及面也越来越大。除了向中国的麦当劳和肯德基餐厅供应肉类外，福喜还向日本的麦当劳和FamilyMart供应鸡肉产品。

    这一丑闻对于麦当劳和百胜等过去20年中在中国迅速扩张的企业而言，可能会产生不良的政治后果。新华社引用商务部研究院消费经济研究部副主任赵萍的话，称企业管理层能力不足，缺乏培训，是“食品安全丑闻不断”的原因之一。

    截至本周三早些时候，麦当劳尚未就该事件发表评论。（财富中文网）

    译者：严匡正

    Chinese police have detained five people in an investigation into a supplier of meat to fast-food chains including McDonald’s Corp KFC parent Yum Brands Inc. and Starbucks , agencies reported Wednesday.

    Those arrested include the head of the company concerned, Shanghai Husi Food Co. Ltd., which is owned by Chicago-based OSI Group. Chinese state-owned news agency Xinhua said that Zhang Hui, manager of Husi’s quality control department, had confessed during interrogation that the company “has been conducting the malpractice for years under tacit approval of senior managers.”

    The scandal erupted at the end of last week after the network Dragon TV aired a documentary alleging that Shanghai Husi mixed expired meat with good meat and used meat salvaged from the floor in its shipments.

    Reuters reported that Shanghai consumer protection authorities had sealed more than 1,000 tons of suspect produce from OSI in China, and another 100 tons of produce at selected customers.

    OSI Group had said earlier this week it was “appalled” by the allegations, and is fully cooperating with the investigation.

    “Our company believes this to be an isolated event, but takes full responsibility for the situation,” OSI said on its website.

    Sheldon Lavin, OSI’s owner and chief executive, followed up with a statement Wednesday saying that what happened “is completely unacceptable.”

    “I will not try and defend it or explain it,” he said. “It was terribly wrong, and I am appalled that it ever happened in the company that I own.”

    Yum said in an e-mailed statement that it “It is difficult to believe and completely unacceptable that the management of Shanghai Husi, a division of OSI, would oversee and organise illegal and dishonest operations.”

    It said it has stopped buying from Shanghai Husi and arranged alternative supplies, and consequently doesn’t expect any disruption to KFC restaurants in China. However, it said Pizza Hut might experience “some temporary shortages of certain products”.

    The scandal has widened in the last couple of days as the extent of Shanghai Husi’s customer base has become clear. In addition to supplying meat to McDonald’s and KFC in China, it has also supplied chicken products to McDonald’s and to FamilyMart in Japan.

    The scandal appears to be creating the risk of political consequences for the likes of McDonald’s and Yum, which have expanded rapidly in China over the last two decades. Xinhua quoted Zhao Ping, deputy director of an arm of the Ministry of Commerce specialising in international trade, as saying that inadequate management capacity and training was responsible for “continued food safety scandals.”

    No-one at McDonald’s was immediately available to comment early Wednesday.