Wal-Mart China head resigns with probe underway into organic labeling

According to Wal-Mart Stores Inc its head of China operations along with a top deputy had resigned, as the company grappled with a pork-labelling investigation that resulted in closing down 13 stores and the detention of at least 27 people.

Anthony Rose, a Hong Kong-based spokesman, told Bloomberg over phone today that Ed Chan had resigned for personal reasons and his resignation had nothing to do with the pork-labelling probe in the southwestern city of Chongqing.

Clara Wong, Wal-Mart China's senior vice president for people, also quit.

The probe has put the world's largest retailers' 15-year expansion in jeopardy, over labelling of ordinary pork as organic in Chongqing, where Wal-Mart is fighting 21 cases of false advertising and sales of expired or uninspected food since 2006.

China has tightened scrutiny of food retailers following a number of cases including the sale of melamine-tainted milk and reprocessed cooking oil.

Chan would be replaced by Scott Price, chief executive of Wal Mart's Asian operations, the company said in an e- mailed statement today. The appointment was on an interim basis the company said.