As the mainland authorities announced yesterday that the packaging of imported seafood from Vietnam tested positive for COVID-19, the Municipal Affairs Bureau (IAM) said in a statement that it immediately tested seafood imports from Vietnam but did not find any abnormalities.
According to the statement, the bureau tested imports from the same supply company as the one in the mainland and asked local businesses to halt selling products from that firm. The statement added that even though no novel coronavirus was found on the products, the bureau decided to suspend all imports by the company.
The statement noted that since July 2020 the bureau has tested multiple seafood consignments imported from Vietnam, adding that, so far, no COVID-19 has been found on any of the products. The statement pointed out that in the recent three months, the bureau has been strictly implementing the city’s COVID-19 prevention and control measures, completely disinfecting and quarantining imports before they enter the local retail market.
The statement said that as soon as the bureau is notified by authorities about imports testing positive for COVID-19, the bureau suspends all imports coming from the respective supplier. The statement said that even when the suspension is over, the bureau continues to collect samples for nucleic acid tests (NAT) from the supplier concerned.
