Maggots, bacteria allegedly plagued China's number one meat brand

Allegations of maggots, excessive bacteria and illegal additives have plagued China's biggest meat products company, Shuanghui International, since at least 2011, according to a series of reports by China's state-run media. On Wednesday, the Hong Kong-headquartered Shuanghui announced its intent to buy U.S.-based Smithfield Foods, the world's largest processor of pork, for nearly $5 billion.

In June 2012, a woman in Beijing allegedly found several dead maggots inside a package of Shuanghui sausages bought at a supermarket. Her daughters, who ate the sausages before the discovery, reportedly suffered from vomiting and diarrhea, according to the Global Times, an English-language newspaper under the Chinese-language People's Daily.

In May 2012, industrial authorities in China's southern coastal city of Guangzhou reported Shuanghui's cumin-flavored sausages contained "excessive" bacteria, which could cause diarrhea, reported the Shanghai Daily.

And in March 2011, China Central Television reported a Shuanghui International subsidiary bought pigs that had been fed with meal containing clenbuterol. The illegal additive keeps the animals lean but can kill people if eaten. Shuanghai's chairman later apologized to consumers and announced nearly $2 billion in losses two weeks after the revelations.