Posted on November 8, 2012, Thursday
Dr Humrawali Khan
KUCHING:
The State Veterinary Authority will now carry out test on every
consignment of Ayamas products imported into the state following the
recent discovery of prohibited antibiotic ‘chloramphenicol’ in chicken
frankfurter produced by the firm. Previously, tests were only carried out on the third consignment.
State
Veterinary Authority director Dr Humrawali Khan told The Borneo Post
and See Hua Daily News here yesterday that the initiative was deemed
necessary following the shocking find. He added that for now all
importation of Ayamas products into the state had been suspended pending
investigation by the Ministry of Health.
“When there is a residue in food, it comes under the Food Act, and this falls under the purview of the Ministry of Health. Whether
the product will be confiscated from the market depends on the
ministry.” Dr Humrawali said he was in the dark how the contamination
occurred because Ayamas, being a leading player in frozen food
production, had an accredited processing plant, although they depended
on contract farmers for the supply of chickens.
“Ayamas may have
stringent tests on their own farms, but we never know about the other
suppliers because there will always be unscrupulous people out there,”
he said, adding that chloramphenicol was from chicken feeds and the
water.
However, even if Ayamas was later found to be responsible
for the contamination, Dr Humrawali opined they (Ayamas) should not be
served punitive action. He reasoned that punitive action could kill the industry, and eventually lead to food import, which could harm the economy. “Giving punitive action will not be good for the industry and the economy in the long run. Rather,
they should be allowed to sort things out and see what went wrong.” On
the other hand, Dr Humrawali stressed that big and leading players must
be responsible for their actions, and not be allowed to do things at
their whims and fancies.
Meanwhile, Ayamas assured in a statement
yesterday that the company viewed the matter seriously and was carrying
out a thorough investigation.
It said the ban came as a shock
because the company did not use chloramphenicol or any other banned
antibiotics in the raw materials they used. “Ayamas implemented
the most stringent quality control measures to ensure that only the top
quality food products leave our plants, and the food safety of our
customers is our top priority,” it said.
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