Cambodia detects SARS-CoV-2 in frozen meat imported from India

Buffalo meat imported from India (Source: khmertimeskh.com)

Phnom Penh (VNA) – Cambodia’s Ministry of Health (MoH) announced on July 27 that the Customs Office had seized three containers of frozen buffalo meat imported from India after the meat tested positive for coronavirus SARS-CoV-2.

The MoH's Director General Hok Kim Cheng said that the samples of frozen buffalo meat had been taken for laboratory testing by the Pasteur Institute in Cambodia, the Khmer Times reported.

The buffalo meat will be burned in Oral district, Kampong Speu province, in the next 2 to 3 days, said Governor of Kampong Speu, Vy Samnang.

The governor also called on people to ask for the origin of foodstuff before purchase.

On July 24, the MoH warned that the virus can stay on frozen meat. Due to the massive spread of the virus in India, beef and buffalo meat from the country are now seized by customs.

The Southeast Asian nation first imposed a temporary ban on the import of frozen meat and other frozen items from India on May 1 due to a fear of coronavirus contamination, but lifted it on June 19./.

VNA