|
MANILA : The Philippine Health Department is assuring the public that it is safe to eat pork.
This is even though it recently confirmed that a farm worker had been infected with the Ebola virus, from contact with pigs.
Business used to be brisk in the district of La Loma in Quezon City, which is known as the Lechon Capital of the Philippines.
Nena Cesario, Lechon Maker, said: "Business is slow. Not too many people are buying lechon, maybe because of the hard times and they think there is a problem with the pigs."
The Health Department recently announced that a farm worker has been infected with Ebola-Reston antibodies.
It is the first known case of the virus jumping between pigs and humans.
But health officials said there is little immediate health risk.
They also said the farm worker is healthy and has had no serious illness in the past 12 months.
According to the Department of Health, eating pork remains safe, and so most Filipinos still continue to savour the delicious taste of the lechon, especially its crispy and crunchy skin.
Some regular patrons said they cannot resist pigging out.
One of them said: "A lot of people are eating lechon and they are still alive, so I am not afraid to eat it because it is really delicious."
Another added: "As long as there are people selling lechon and eating lechon, I will continue to eat it because it is my favourite."
But authorities are reminding the public to take general precautions in handling and cooking meat.
They also advise them to buy meat only from stalls certified by the National Meat Inspection Service of the Department of Agriculture.
Dr Enrique Tayag, National Epidemiology Center, said: "Do not undercook the meat, you have to cook it adequately so that you kill any viruses or any other bacteria."
The government ban on pork exports is still in effect, while more tests are being done on the other farm workers that may have been exposed to the virus. - CNA/ms
Source |
No comments:
Post a Comment