May 1, 2009

UAE bans import of pork amid swine flu fears

The United Arab Emirates has also joined the bandwagon of banning pork imports as precaution against swine flu, health officials said Thursday (April 29) despite having no concrete evidence that people have contracted the virus by eating pork.

Though the Emirates -- home to Middle East's busiest airport and seaport -- is major global transportation hub, no cases of swine flu have been reported in the Persian Gulf country.

Abdullah abu Ruwaida, a public health and environmental consultant for the UAE's General Secretariat of Municipalities, said the directive was issued to relevant government agencies this week. The ban applies to imports from all countries.

A Dubai public health department official involved in recommending the ban, veterinary consultant Hisham Fahmi, said authorities did not want to take any chances with the disease.

The World Health Organization and the US government's Centres for Disease Control and Prevention have stressed that the virus is not transmitted by eating pork.

Most in the Muslim world consider pigs unclean animals and do not eat pork because of religious restrictions. Pigs are banned in the UAE, but many supermarkets, especially in large cities including Dubai, have areas where imported pork products are sold to the conservative country's large non-Muslim population.

Health officials in Dubai said the import ban applied to the entire country, though each of the country's seven sheikdoms has considerable autonomy and could enforce stricter bans.

Previously imported pork products were still selling in Dubai grocery stores Thursday. But Spinneys supermarkets, which sells pork at several of its 36 outlets in the UAE, said Abu Dhabi authorities have asked stores in that emirate to stop selling pork.

Officials at the Abu Dhabi Food Control Authority could not be reached for comment.

The WHO has raised its pandemic alert to the second-highest level, meaning it believes a global outbreak of swine flu is imminent. The virus has spread to at least 10 countries and is blamed for 168 deaths in Mexico and one in the United States.

Other Mideast countries also have taken drastic measures to combat swine flu. Egypt ordered the slaughter of the country's 300,000 pigs, and Lebanon has discouraged traditional Arab peck-on-the-cheek greetings. No cases of swine flu have been reported in either country.