Wednesday, August 22, 2007

Chinese Response: "I'm rubber, you're glue. What bounces off me...

...sticks to you."

I'm unconvinced.
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10 comments:

Unknown said...

Yeah, whatever.

When they have the first family pet or person keel over from toxic soy we sold them, then I'll start listening. Until then, STFU.

11:57 AM, August 22, 2007
NotClauswitz said...

Crap, now they know the secret to our zombie soy-lent green mix, the red beans.
What's unsurprising is that Al-Reuters is propagating the meme.

12:16 PM, August 22, 2007
Anonymous said...

Ok, who leaked the info on the export-only-soybeans-from-unremediated-Hanford-soil-project?

Regards,
Rabbit

1:22 PM, August 22, 2007
Anonymous said...

Wait the such a thing as substandard soybeans? What do they smell even worse after they get wet, is that even possible.

2:03 PM, August 22, 2007
Anonymous said...

I wouldn't be too surprised if China has some level of legitimacy in their claim...

It's probably been 15 or more years ago but some representatives from the China ag ministry visited the U.S. and one of the places they stopped was my parents’ farm in Idaho. They climbed around on the combine and in the back of one of the grain trucks appearing to be looking for something. They finally asked, through a translator, why this wheat was so clean and the grain they get from the U.S. was so dirty. Clean, in this context, means free from weed and other crop seeds as well as free from chaff, stems, insects, and actual dirt.

They apparently believed they were being hoodwinked in some way because this grain, straight from the combine, was too clean to be believable.

My Dad was a bit confused and said there was nothing special about this grain. It had come straight from the combine, as they had seen, and while of good quality was not nearly as good as it should be after it goes through the cleaner at the warehouse. The Chinese assured him that this was much better quality than what they receive at their ports from the U.S.

There have been persistent rumors, and random confirmation such as the above, that someone adds chaff, weed seeds, and even water to the exported grain as is loaded in the ships. They are selling wheat/peas/barley/whatever by the ton. Adding in stuff that should be thrown away increases their profits.

Other rumors include payoffs to Federal grain inspectors and inspectors that refuse to release ships with inferior quality grain being fired.

Joe Huffman

4:15 PM, August 22, 2007
Divemedic said...

Remember that the Chinese hold LARGE amounts of US dollars and US bonds. If we ever pissed them off, that is all they need to dump the dollar in the crapper.

4:45 PM, August 22, 2007
Unknown said...

And who's going to buy their shower flip-flops and toxic toys if they tank our economy (or go to war with us)?

5:43 PM, August 22, 2007
NotClauswitz said...

Somehow the whole aspect of sending them beans though the hands of a bunch of Teamsters, from Union truck to warehouse, to dock-loading. If they take their Mob-cut then they have adjust the weight back up... Hey look, there on the ground, gravel!

7:56 PM, August 22, 2007
Anonymous said...

This is NOT a new problem and the source, most often, is the actual grain contract. What is the percentage of allowable foreign material or FM? Shippers often load the vessel with good quality, clean grain and carefully monitor the tonnage then if 2% FM is allowed they top it off with 2% of FM, and YES they may very well use gravel, but most often it is just plain old dirt because it is cheaper. If the Chinese or any other foreign customer wants truly clean grain, they have to put a very low FM percentage in the contract and then pay the higher price. Don't cry for them, they know what they paid for.

5:17 AM, August 23, 2007
Matt G said...

"Harmful weeds and contaminated dirt had been found among the beans, which could threaten China's agricultural and forestry production and ecological safety, the quality watchdog said."

China: Last great defender of the ecosystem!!!

Anybody seen any Yangtze River Dolphins, lately?

3:49 PM, August 23, 2007

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