Food Safety Focus (127^th Issue, February 2017) – Food Incident Highlight

Chloramphenicol Found in a Batch of Local Live Pigs

Last month, the Centre for Food Safety (CFS) announced that the urine samples taken from a batch of locally produced pigs contained veterinary drug residue of chloramphenicol, which is an antibiotic not permitted in food animals. The batch of 19 pigs has subsequently been destroyed.

Chloramphenicol can be used to treat bacterial infections in humans. However, due to its potential toxicity to the bone marrow and the availability of other alternatives, it should be used with caution.

To ensure food safety, urine testing is conducted on every batch of pigs sent for slaughtering at slaughterhouses, and no pigs will be slaughtered and released to the market for sale unless they have passed the test. The CFS will work with relevant parties to follow up on the case and take appropriate action.