By Ling Hui
KUCHING, March 11: All wooden chopping blocks used for cutting pork must be grinded off at least one-inch from the top, bottom and sides, says Sibu Municipal Council (SMC) chairman Clarence Ting.
He said in order to stop the spread of African Swine Fever (ASF) entirely, butcher stalls and pork shops in Sibu, other than the abattoir, must also participate in the cleaning and sanitising works starting Saturday (March 12).
All tools like knives, hooks, torches, buckets, spoons, ladles, gas tanks and any other related items must be thoroughly cleaned and soaked in disinfectant for at least 30 minutes before they are rinsed and dried.
Machineries such as meat grinders, weighing scales and deep freezers must also be dismantled and thoroughly cleansed and sanitised.
Any washable areas including walls, tables, rails, and storages must be scrubbed clean while drains are to be cleared of any blockades and cleaned thoroughly.
Ting, in a social post today, said it was recommended by the Department of Veterinary Services Sarawak (DVSS) to sprinkle and leave calcium hydroxide in drains for at least a week before the second round of deep cleaning and sanitising.
In terms of waste, he said plastic bags, ropes, strings, wooden pellets, polystrene boxes, used boots, cooler boxes, meat and meat products must all be disposed off properly.
“That is the extent and scale of cleaning and sanitising we are going at to ensure all pork selling areas in markets and shops are free of any diseases.
“These ares they have to do the same thing (as in the abattoir) because only by doing this, we can stop the spread and this sort of infection,” he said.
Since March 9, Sibu abattoir was instructed to be closed down for 60 days following a discovery that five out of six pigs there tested positive for ASF.
The first round of cleaning and sanitising of pig pens, slaughtering and sewage treatment areas in the abattoir was done yesterday while SMC awaits further instruction from DVSS.
SMC had also set a few new rules and regulations to limit the number and health condition of pigs transported into the abattoir. — DayakDaily
