(Yicai Global) June 23 -- Tyson's current stocks of chicken in China come from the domestic industrial chain and are not restricted imports, the company said in statements on Alibaba Group Holding's Tmall, JD.Com and other online shopping platforms yesterday.

Frozen chicken sold in its online stores is all produced and processed in China. The sources are Rizhao, Shandong province and Nantong, Jiangsu province, both in eastern China. Its steaks are imported from Australia, not from the United States, the company said on Tmall.

China barred chicken shipments from US-based meat processor Tyson on June 21 due to a recent Covid-19 cluster inside Tyson's US poultry slaughtering unit, in a move which has drawn great attention. It also underscores concerns the Covid-19 may infiltrate the human food supply after a rash of infections at a Beijing wholesale market and at various food processing plants around the globe. China's General Administration of Customs will impound shipments from the company currently in Hong Kong or coming to Hong Kong.

Xinfadi, Beijing's largest wholesale food market, also experienced a recent Covid-19 cluster. The Chinese capital's 236 newly confirmed cases from June 11 to 21 were mostly related to that source and regulators have kept close tabs on frozen pork, chicken and seafood ever since.

Editor: Ben Armour