BEIJING – Eight animal husbandry and commerce officials were dismissed from their jobs after meat from dead diseased pigs was found to have entered the country’s food supply, according toChina state media reports.

The problem was revealed by China Central Television, a state-sanctioned broadcaster. The meat allegedly was sourced from slaughterhouses in Gaoan, a city in central Jiangxi Province. The suspect meat was distributed to at least seven provinces in all, according to the report.


Additional news reports state that the sale of pigs that had died from diseases while at pig farms had been going on for years and was an open secret in the industry. Some of the pigs were known to be infected with foot-and-mouth disease.

Gaoan is one of China's major pork producing cities with a slaughter rate of 2 million head per year, according to reports.