China favors black pork, turning its back on white pork.

Source: amp.laodong.vn “I want my children to eat the delicious pork that I used to eat when I was young. Not the cheap, low-quality, fast-produced pork that has infiltrated my children’s lives” - Gao Xianghua, a crab seller, shared at a meat shop near his home when buying pork ribs, legs, and sausages from black pork valued at 1,000 Chinese yuan (144 USD). Gao Xianghua plans to marinate the pork with Sichuan peppercorns and salt and then hang it on the balcony to dry for the Chinese New Year. Gao Xianghua is a member of China’s emerging middle class who is no longer satisfied with mass-produced pork from imported “white pigs” from the West but is craving high-end products. In particular, for older buyers, black pork evokes childhood memories, when black-haired pigs were raised at home and slaughtered for family gatherings during the Chinese New Year. The demand for pork touted as the “Wagyu of pork,” known for its marbled texture and tenderness, is a lifeline for China’s ...