Packed in the US VS Made in the USA.

[Clarence Martin]

Been reading food labels recently and noticed on some containers it will say made in the USA and on some container, it will say Packed in the USA .

Is Packed in the USA just a sneaky way of saying it is imported from overseas ?

[Grant Wilkinson]

Yes. It tells you absolutely nothing about the origin of the product, other than it's not a product that is the produce or manufacture of the US. It's the same here in Canada.

[Myk Rian]

Well, they're sending chickens to China for processing. Then the Chinese send them back for packaging.
That's what this country has stooped so low for. It isn't just chickens either.

[Pat Barry]

Well, they're sending chickens to China for processing. Then the Chinese send them back for packaging.
That's what this country has stooped so low for. It isn't just chickens either.
What do you mean "this country has stooped so low for"? You sound as if you think chicken processing is a top tier job

[Myk Rian]

I stand by my words. If you don't mind even simple jobs going away, good for you.

[Mel Miller]

Well, they're sending chickens to China for processing. Then the Chinese send them back for packaging.
That's what this country has stooped so low for. It isn't just chickens either.

I hate to hear that. Doesn't give me any confidence in food safety or quality.

[Jon Nuckles]

I know this is wondering off the original topic, but I am curious. How can it make economic sense to raise chickens here, send them to China to process, then send them back here? Also, do they ship live chickens to China, feeding and caring for them on the boat? Or do they slaughter, clean and freeze them here and send them to China to cut into pieces? Where did you hear this story, Myk? I admit I am no expert, though I did work two summers at an Oscar Mayer hog plant during college. ;-)

[Myk Rian]

It was a Newsweek story. It hasn't happened yet, but Tyson Foods lobbied, and won approval for it. Strange indeed, but it could still happen even if it makes no sense. It is already being done with seafood.
http://www.newsweek.com/2014/10/10/curious-case-chinese-chicken-import-export-business-273699.html
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/nancy-huehnergarth/chicken-seafood-china_b_4871733.html (http://www.newsweek.com/2014/10/10/curious-case-chinese-chicken-import-export-business-273699.html)

[Dave Lehnert]

Guess it all depends what foods you are talking about. Pineapples would be purchased in bulk, delivered to the USA and packaged here. Not sure another way to word it on the package.

[John Coloccia]

Guess it all depends what foods you are talking about. Pineapples would be purchased in bulk, delivered to the USA and packaged here. Not sure another way to word it on the package.

"Imported"

:)

[Jim Matthews]

It's an indication of how little it costs to send a container to China.
Most of the ships at Sea are empty, on that return leg.

I've been in a rendering and packing plant - it's brutal work.
We get to pick one of two choices for inexpensive food;
ship it to places with lower labor costs or import low wage labor.

Want it to change?
End the subsidies that make it profitable.

[Jon Nuckles]

Thanks for the link, Myk. Strange web of motivations going on there.

[Larry Edgerton]

I read an article on fish farms in foreign countries a bit ago. In Vietnan the workers lived over the fish farms and there was no septic system. Similar conditions in blocked off fiords in South America for Salmon.

Who knows what we are really eating, scary stuff.

[William Adams]

Actually, China has been trying very hard to prevent empty ships from docking.

This is just the latest method which takes advantage of the structures put in place trying to fill containers heading to China.

[Chuck Wintle]

I am very leery of foodstuffs coming from China since they do not have the same consideration for pollution and safety in food as in NA.

[Judson Green]

It was a Newsweek story. It hasn't happened yet, but Tyson Foods lobbied, and won approval for it. Strange indeed, but it could still happen even if it makes no sense. It is already being done with seafood.
http://www.newsweek.com/2014/10/10/curious-case-chinese-chicken-import-export-business-273699.html
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/nancy-huehnergarth/chicken-seafood-china_b_4871733.html (http://www.newsweek.com/2014/10/10/curious-case-chinese-chicken-import-export-business-273699.html)




Isn't seafood for the most part processed and even frozen on the ship that catches it?

Edit: OK just read the article... wow!

[Scott Shepherd]

In all fairness, from the Newsweek article linked above....

When asked about the USDA’s decision to allow China to process chickens for the U.S. market, a Tyson spokesperson
told Newsweek, “All of the chicken we sell in the U.S. is raised and processed here in the U.S. We have no plans to import chicken from China.”

So why did Tyson lobby the USDA? Corporations are not required to disclose in detail their reasons for supporting specific issues, but in an
email to Newsweek, Tyson says that the lobbying efforts reported in 2013 were around trade and tariff issues for the export of U.S.-produced
products into China and not related to the import of poultry products produced in China.

That's not quite what the headlines want you to take from it. So "no plans to do that" and was based on trying to make it easier to EXPORT U.S. produced chicken and IMPORT it INTO China, not export it, have it processed, and bring it back.

[Stan Calow]

Aren't we shipping wood to China to make furniture?

[Tom Stenzel]

My wife shops at Target and awhile back bought the house brand of aluminum foil. It said packed in the USA, on the side it said Aluminum made in Russia. The box she just bought now says where it's packed but not where it's made. Wonder why.

-Tom

[William Adams]

It wasn't so long ago that the U.S. had similar problems.

Upton Sinclair's The Jungle really should be required reading in schools even now.

[Brian Elfert]

Isn't seafood for the most part processed and even frozen on the ship that catches it?


I thought they only do that with some of the cheap fish? Most of the TV shows showing seafood being caught they just bring it back to land for processing. One TV show did show a factory ship catching pollock or some other "white" fish and processing it right into McDonald's Fish Fillets and other products. They claimed that the Fish Fillets and such just covered the cost of running the ship. The profit was made from harvesting roe, or eggs from the fish. They went out for about two weeks, or until the boat was full. They ran 24x7 with two shifts.

[John Sanford]

My wife shops at Target and awhile back bought the house brand of aluminum foil. It said packed in the USA, on the side it said Aluminum made in Russia. The box she just bought now says where it's packed but not where it's made. Wonder why.

-Tom

This one is a good example of the economics of global trade. The reason why the foil would be made in Russia and packed here is a) Russia has a fair amount of excess aluminum production capacity. B] Consumer packed aluminum foil has a lot of air and therefore takes up a LOT of shipping space. Thus, it's cheaper to ship big honkin' rolls of aluminum foil to the US, and then pack them here for domestic shipping.

[Myk Rian]

My wife shops at Target and awhile back bought the house brand of aluminum foil. It said packed in the USA, on the side it said Aluminum made in Russia. The box she just bought now says where it's packed but not where it's made. Wonder why.

-Tom
Russia is very big on aluminum production. They have been for a long time.

[paul cottingham]

I stand by my words. If you don't mind even simple jobs going away, good for you.

That's good stuff right there, Myk.
its crazy isn't it?

[paul cottingham]

It was a Newsweek story. It hasn't happened yet, but Tyson Foods lobbied, and won approval for it. Strange indeed, but it could still happen even if it makes no sense. It is already being done with seafood.
http://www.newsweek.com/2014/10/10/curious-case-chinese-chicken-import-export-business-273699.html
(http://www.newsweek.com/2014/10/10/curious-case-chinese-chicken-import-export-business-273699.html)http://www.huffingtonpost.com/nancy-huehnergarth/chicken-seafood-china_b_4871733.html



Its crazy. What was it that Russian said? "When the world comes to hang America, an American capitalist will sell them the rope."
or something to that effect.