Yes, you read the title correctly but before you jump up to inspect and throw out all the meat you purchased from Wal-Mart, please note that this only affects the Wal-Mart locations in China.
Obviously donkey meat is common in China, however, when it’s mixed with other animal products is when it becomes a problem. Five Spice Donkey Meat is being accused of contaminating its popular donkey selection with fox meat forcing Wal-Mart to recall all the meat in Jinan, according to the Shandong Food and Administration. The company apologized to customers and said it would provide refunds.
Wal-Mart U.S. spokespeople did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
But in a statement posted on Weibo – China’s popular Twitter-style micro blogging site – the company said it had “zero-tolerance” for contamination problems. It said it was promoting its food safety efforts by introducing routine DNA testing of easily adulterated meat products such as beef, mutton, donkey and venison.
“This is another hit on Wal-Mart’s brand, meaning wealthy shoppers will start to lose the trust they had before,” said Shaun Rein, Shanghai-based managing director of China Market Research Group. CMR estimates that over the last three years, Wal-Mart’s market share has fallen from 7.5 percent to 5.2 percent. This probably won’t help that market share expand and it’s not the first time that Chinese food suppliers have come under criticism. In 2011, Wal-Mart was fined for selling duck meat after its expiration date in China.
China is the largest grocery market in the world, valued at over $1 trillion dollars and expected to open another 110 stores in the next few years. Set to balloon to $1.5 trillion by 2016 according to the Institute of Grocery Distribution, that growth is now threatened by this development.
