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Double-dead meat products are harmful – avoid, says QC councilor

Published Nov 29, 2019 12:00 am
By Chito Chavez Quezon City officials on Friday warned the public that eating double-dead meat (botcha) is unsafe and can pose serious health issues. (MANILA BULLETIN) (MANILA BULLETIN) The caution was made in the wake of the African Swine Flu (ASF) scare that hit the city recently. With the strong demand for meat this coming holiday season, Councilor Victor Ferrer Jr. said unscrupulous groups use botcha to make processed meat or as ingredients in dishes sold to the public. Ferrer said this development has alarmed the city government because individuals, especially those belonging to the urban poor category, are forced to purchase hot meat that is often sold at almost half the price. Filipinos traditionally prepare sumptuous meals for their noche buena and media noche festivities during Christmas and New Year’s Eve. Also, Councilor Allan Francisco appealed to the public never to buy unsafe double-dead meat as they run the risk of being afflicted with diseases like diarrhea, sore eyes, and skin infections. Article 18 of Republic Act 7394, also known as the Consumer Act of the Philippines, prohibits the manufacture for sale, offer for sale, distribution in commerce, or importation into the Philippines of any consumer product which is not in conformity with applicable consumer product quality or safety standards. The law imposes a fine of not less than P1,000 but not more than P10,000 or an imprisonment of not less than two months but not more than one year or both, depending on the discretion of the court. With the high probability of botcha being sold in the market, Ferrer asked the city government to intensify its drive against syndicates selling double-dead meat products in the local markets to protect the public from communicable diseases. Ferrer noted the possibility of hot meat flooding the market with the high demand of processed meats and similar products this holiday season. He added that reports reaching his office disclosed that expired and unlabeled hotdogs, ham, tocino, tapa, frankfurters, and marinated meat products are being sold in the markets of Quezon City. Other city officials appealed to the city government to create a special team that will strictly monitor all private and public markets in a bid to crack down on the sale of double-dead or unsafe meat. Ferrer also wants the Quezon City Police Department and the city government’s health department, market development and administration department, and other concerned offices to regularly coordinate with the National Meat Inspection Service to ensure that only meat safe for human consumption is sold in the private and public markets of Quezon City. He also wants stiffer penalties like huge fines, longer jail terms, and if possible both punishments to be imposed on unscrupulous individuals and errant meat traders operating in the city. He cautioned consumers that buying double-dead meat may prove disastrous to their families as its intake might cause serious ailments or even death in some cases. Due to its proximity to the piggeries in Central and Northern Luzon provinces, Balintawak Market on Edsa Avenue in Quezon City remains the favorite dumping ground of the contaminated meat. Ferrer also urged the city government to check on lechon (roasted pig) stalls to ensure that their products are safe for human consumption. He advised the public to buy lechon only from reputable stores, saying that fly-by-night vendors whose unlabeled products are displayed only on sidewalks are prone to bacterial-infected contamination caused by pollution. Doctors also asked the public to consume high-cholesterol food in moderation as overindulgence in lechon can cause illnesses. Dealers of lechon outlets in La Loma said that they are leaving their products on the sidewalks only for a short period of time when they are too hot to be confined inside their display area. “Inilalabas muna para lumamig, nililinis yan. Pag tapos linisin, ipapasok sa loob ng salamin. Kasi pag umuusok pa, magmo-moist yan sa loob (We take the lechon outside to cool before placing them inside glass cases. We do this because steam from newly-cooked lechon causes condensation on the glass)," a worker at a lechon outlet added. He added that roasted pigs will not be contaminated if they are exposed outside the display room for only a short time. The worker added the sale of lechon usually peaks on Dec. 20 and two days before the celebration of New Year’s Day. READ MORE: Public urged to inspect food products before buying
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