Could it really get any worse for America? First, they get a Chinese guy to build the next memorial in Washington D.C. Then, Major League Baseball teams begin signing players from China. Now it seems that the apple pie that’s baking in Grandma’s oven is probably made from Chinese apples. A shocking report by the AP Sunday reveals how China has decimated the American apple industry. While only 15 years ago, China grew fewer apples than America, now it grows 5 times as many. Apple pickers in China earn an average of $2 a day, $8-10 less than their American counterparts earn per hour, apple producers in America find it nearly impossible to remain competitive. A seventh-generation Pennsylvania apple grower told the AP, “We’re facing a threat that we’ve never faced before in terms of their ability to come in and essentially replace every apple that we produce in this country numerically and at a much lower cost.” U.S. apple growers are pressuring the government to implement new legislation that would benefit the American apple industry such as increased subsidies, mandatory country-of-origin stickers on all domestic and imported apples and stricter pest control standards that would limit the number of Chinese apples entering the U.S. market. With regard to the country-of-origin stickers that would encourage produce shoppers to buy American, it’s not like China’s apple exporters couldn’t find a way to stick “Made in U.S.A.” stickers on their apples and pay their way through inspection. And with regard to the health standards, I’ve bought apples in China that smelled pungently of shit. Seriously. I asked a Chinese friend about it and as he explained, often times, animal and sometimes human fecal matter is used as a fertilizer and even fruit or vegetables that grow on trees are susceptible to contact. Forget patriotic consumerism. If the American apple industry wants to survive, they should focus an ad campaign around Chinese apples that smell of shit. Because in a price war, even with the most American product, there is no way to beat China.
•AP: US Apple Growers Brace for China Rivals