What does the stamp on the pork prove?

As a meat lover, I believe everyone must love pork deeply. After all, braised pork, fish-flavored pork shreds, twice-cooked pork, sweet and sour spareribs... are so delicious! However, have you noticed that there are often traces of stamps on the skin of raw pork bought in supermarkets or vegetable markets? If you look closely, these stamps are different in shape and color. What is going on?

Image source: Pixabay

#1Why does pork need to be stamped?

Stamping the pork for sale is not something that pork producers do to kill time, but is clearly stipulated. In 2021, the State Council revised and passed the "Regulations on the Management of Swine Slaughter". Among them, Article 12 clearly requires: "Pigs slaughtered in designated pig slaughterhouses must be inspected and approved by animal health supervision agencies in accordance with the law, and a quarantine certificate must be attached"; Article 15 clearly requires: "For pig products that have passed the meat quality inspection, the designated pig slaughterhouse (farm) must stamp the meat quality inspection certificate and attach a meat quality inspection certificate. Pig products that have not undergone meat quality inspection or have failed the meat quality inspection shall not leave the factory (farm)."

That is to say, only pork that has passed quarantine can be stamped with the quarantine inspection seal; unqualified products need to be handled according to relevant procedures and cannot be allowed to enter the market. Therefore, stamping is actually a certificate for pork, proving that the pork has passed quarantine and quality inspection, which is also a guarantee for the food health and safety of our people.

#2 Different shapes, different meanings

The stamps on pork have different shapes and meanings. There are two types of stamps that indicate pork has passed inspection: round stamps and roller stamps. When you see pork with these two stamps, please buy it with confidence.

The most common round stamp with the words "inspection passed" indicates that the pork is of qualified quality and can be eaten with confidence. The wheel stamp indicates that the pork has been inspected by an official veterinarian assigned by the animal health supervision agency. The wheel stamp usually has the following from top to bottom: province name, designated pig factory number, "quarantine inspection completed", and year, month and day.

Image source: Internet

But if you see these shapes of stamps on pork, please be careful, don't buy it, and don't even think about eating it. The "X"-shaped stamp is a destruction stamp, and pork with this stamp is prohibited from being sold or eaten; the triangular stamp is a "high temperature stamp", which means that this kind of meat must be processed at high temperatures within a specified time before it can be sold; the oval stamp is a "process oil stamp", which means that this meat cannot be sold or eaten, and is used as meat for industrial oil refining.

#3 Is the chop on pork safe?

The colors of the pork stamps are blue, red, and purple. Some people who like to worry about whether these stamps can be eaten, but there is no need to worry, these are made of food coloring and are harmless to the human body.

Take the blue seal for example, the blue ink used is actually a special liquid for food blue inspection mark, which is mainly made of a mixture of brilliant blue (colorant), glycerin, alcohol, distilled water and vitamin C. Qualified food blue inspection mark special liquid meets the relevant requirements of food hygiene, and eating it will not cause any harm to our health.

Image source: Internet

There was a saying in the pork market that "red stamps are sows, blue stamps are boars". In fact, this is not true. The color of the stamp is determined according to the specific usage in each region. You may see a pink stamp next time. Therefore, do not judge whether the pig is male or female, or whether it can be eaten, by color. The key is to determine it by the shape of the stamp we introduced at the beginning.

#4How to choose pork

In addition to looking at the seal, what other methods can you use to identify and purchase fresh pork?

Smell: Fresh pork should be fresh and fragrant without any peculiar smell, or with a faint smell of blood. If you smell any abnormal smell such as corruption or strange smell, please do not buy it. If you buy frozen pork, normal meat will not have any peculiar smell after thawing. If there is any peculiar smell after thawing, please do not eat it. The identification of odor is very important in the process of purchasing pork. If you find any peculiar smell in pork, do not buy it to prevent bacteria and viruses in pork from infecting the human body.

Look at the color: When buying pork, you can carefully check the color of the pork. Fresh and qualified pork is generally light red or bright red, with clear fibers and shiny white fat. The color of spoiled pork is usually dark red or purple, and the color of the fat is grayish yellow.
Touch: The surface of fresh pork is slightly dry or slightly moist, not sticky, and has good elasticity. The depression after pressing with your fingers can be restored immediately. If it is stale pork, it will feel a little sticky, and the depression after pressing with your fingers cannot be restored immediately, and the elasticity is poor.

Pork is easy to spoil in high-temperature air, so when buying pork, you must carefully choose pork that has passed inspection and is fresh.

Source: Chongqing Science and Technology Museum

Author: A Cup of American Coffee, popular science author

Review experts: Huang He, Li Chunli, Chen Tao, Xu Xiaoping

Statement: Except for original content and special notes, some pictures are from the Internet. They are not for commercial purposes and are only used as popular science materials. The copyright belongs to the original authors. If there is any infringement, please contact us to delete them.