Cabinet members eat seafood lunch to prove it’s not contaminated with Covid-19

After the Laos government banned seafood imports from Thailand due to the Covid-19 outbreak at a Samut Sakhon fishing hub, Thai officials are assuring the neighbouring country that Thai seafood is not contaminated with the coronavirus. In what seems like a publicity stunt, members of the Thai Cabinet ate 7 seafood dishes for lunch yesterday to prove that Covid-19 cannot be transmitted through the cooked seafood.

The lawmakers posed for photos in front of the lunch buffet which included barbeque prawn, spicy prawn soup, stir-fried squid with shrimp paste, deep-fried sea bass with fish sauce, stir-fried shrimp with holy basil leaves, stir-fried squid with salted eggs and crab fried rice. Deputy PM Wissanu Krea-ngam says if seafood is properly cooked, there is no risk of Covid-19.

Last week, the Laos authorities immediately halted all imports of both fresh and frozen seafood from Thailand due to fears that the seafood could be contaminated with the virus. The ban is temporary and the Laos government says they will lift the ban once Thailand and Laos reach a mutual agreement regarding safety measures. The Thai government recently issued a statement saying officials have been screening the seafood products and they have found no traces of Covid-19.

SOURCES: Nation Thailand | Thai PBS

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