Recently, there has been another wave of hype about China in the US political circles, and this time the focus is on garlic. U.S. Republican Senator Rick Scott sent a letter to the U.S. Department of Commerce asking for an investigation into garlic imports from China, which he claimed threatened the U.S
In the letter, Scott accused China of problems with the way garlic is grown, claiming that they use manure for irrigation, which poses a "serious threat to public health and economic prosperity" in the United States. However, Canada's Office of Science and Society at McGill University was quick to clarify, saying there was no evidence that China uses sewage as fertilizer for garlic. The office stresses that both human and animal waste are effective fertilizers, and that China's practices are not uncommon in agriculture.
What's even more interesting is that Scott went so far as to mention that China is "dumping" garlic in his letter, expressing concern about this. China is the world's largest exporter of fresh and chilled garlic, while the United States is a major consumer of garlic, a relationship that has been controversial for years. Scott's questioning of China's "dumping" of garlic on the United States complicates the conversation.
This incident has triggered people to rethink the attitude of US political circles toward China. Some commentators believe that the hype of the "China threat" by US politicians has become more and more outrageous, and has even evolved to an absurd level. Linking garlic, a basic living ingredient, to *** has aroused incomprehension and criticism from the international community.
Against this backdrop, China's garlic has fallen victim to a political wrangling. Whether it is accusations of China's agricultural methods or concerns about **, this seems untenable. This also once again demonstrates the hostility of some US politicians towards China, and people cannot help but worry about the future direction of Sino-US relations.
With the continued attention of **, we will also continue to pay attention to the development of this incident to see where this Sino-US wrestling with garlic as a starting point will eventually go.