RevealSep 15, 2014
China is unable to feed itself. Its appetite has grown too large, too fast.
Last year, a Chinese company bought Smithfield Foods, the iconic ham brand and America’s largest pork producer in the largest Chinese purchase of an American business.
The deal came two years after China’s communist government issued an edict directing its food industry to scour the globe in search of agricultural resources, prompting concerns about the government’s role in the takeover.
The Center for Investigative Reporting spent four months digging into the deal and produced two pieces that aired on PBS NewsHour. The reporting was funded in part by the McGraw Center for Business Journalism at the CUNY Graduate School of Journalism and The Grantham Foundation.
Part 2 looks at the consequences of China’s antiquated agricultural system at home – and the potential impacts of its search abroad for more food.
CREDITS: Reporter and Producer Nathan Halverson
Producer Amanda Pike
Editor David Ritsher Camera Scott Anger Additional Camera Adithya Sambamurthy
Associate Producer Rachel de Leon
Senior Producer Mia Zuckerkandel
Senior Editor Andrew Donohue Managing Editor Amy Pyle Editorial Director Robert Salladay
Executive Producer Sharon Tiller
CIR Executive Director Robert J. Rosenthal
This story was funded in part by: CUNY McGraw Fellowship for Business Journalism The Grantham Foundation
