SFA Said There’s no Evidence That Coronavirus Can be Spread Via Salmon After Beijing’s Salmon Issue

I think it’s pretty normal to be worried when more coronavirus cases happen.

Even scarier is when you’re not sure how it’s spreading.

Such is the case with Beijing recently with a reported increase of coronavirus cases.

And the means by this is happening is rather…fishy.

Spreading By Salmon

The subheader has probably got a few eyebrows furrowed.

It was reported on 15 June that a new cluster of coronavirus infections in Beijing have appeared according to the World Health Organization (WHO) officials.

The hypothesised cause?

Imports and packaging of salmon fish.

Image: SeafoodNews

The salmon lover in me has been extremely fearful.

Naturally, a lot of salmon was pulled from stores in Beijing and no salmon cannot be sent to China now.

Genetic traces of the virus from the Beijing markets suggested it could have come from Europe.

However, importers like Norway’s Food Safety Authority said there was no evidence fish could be infected.

Other companies like Norway Royal Salmon also mentioned none of their employees tested positive for COVID-19.

As of now, there’s still no conclusive evidence of the cause.

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Calming the Crowd

Reader Bao: Huh? Like that then better just avoid salmon in case, right?

I think it’s pretty natural to worry and people want their concerns addressed.

So on 16 June, the Singapore Food Agency (SFA) released a statement on their Facebook.

The post reads as follows:

We are aware of the concerns of COVID-19 being spread through food such as salmon. We are monitoring the developments closely. There is currently no evidence that the COVID-19 virus will be transmitted to humans via food or packaging and equipment. This is in line with the current state of knowledge across scientific communities and public health authorities worldwide.

Nevertheless, SFA continues to emphasise the importance of good public and personal hygiene practices to uphold a high level of public health standards in Singapore.

The rest of the post urges Singaporeans to continue practising good hygiene.

As of this writing, the post has garnered over 64 likes, 11 comments and shared 48 times

Concerned Comments

As mentioned, it’s pretty normal for people to worry.

One user commented that SFA should release this info to the public since it might help put people at ease.

Image: Facebook (SFA)

Some were also concerned but…not so much for the actual cause of the virus.

Image: Facebook (SFA)

I stand with you, Facebook user.

There was also a comment that suggested that it might be the process.

Image: Facebook (SFA)

Regardless, which side are you on? Fear the fish or just eat it anyway?

Still, we can only hope the actual cause is found soon.

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