Source: Gourmet Market Thailand
Pork blood products are set to make a return to Singapore after a lengthy 27-year ban.
Starting 1 April, the Singapore Food Agency (SFA) has approved the import of heat-treated pork blood products from Bangkhla Pig Slaughterhouse, an accredited Thai establishment.
According to a 2021 CNA article, pork blood was banned in 1999.
Source: Johor Kaki
The now-disbanded Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) had banned the collection of pig blood from Singapore’s local slaughterhouse during the Nipah virus outbreak.
Back in 2021, after a restaurant was suspected of selling pork blood products, SFA mentioned that the unhygienic harvesting of blood can result in the introduction of food-borne pathogens into blood food products.
SFA also highlighted that animal blood food products, such as pig’s blood, are “prohibited in Singapore as blood can easily support the growth of bacteria and harbour diseases.”
However, after a recent food safety assessment, SFA has approved the import of pork blood products from an accredited establishment in Thailand.
Source: SFA on Facebook
Bangkhla Pig Slaughterhouse is based in Chachoengsao Province, located east of Bangkok.
For each consignment, the slaughterhouse will have to provide an official health certificate issued by the Department of Livestock Development (DLD) for Thailand.
This is to certify that the import “complies with Singapore’s animal health and food safety requirements”, SFA said.
SFA also reminded traders that only SFA-approved sources are allowed to import pork products.
Some netizens were in a celebratory mood after the announcement, pointing out potential food combinations with pork blood.
Source: Reddit
Netizens also questioned when other “banned” or strictly restricted items would be more readily available.
Source: Reddit
Source: Reddit
Others were sceptical and felt that lifting the ban on pork blood would have little to no impact on the local hawker scene.
Source: Reddit
According to the Chinese Daily Lianhe Zaobao, local manufacturer CP Foods will be importing the products into Singapore.
CP Foods had been selling packaged pig blood from the same slaughterhouse in Thailand for several years.
However, a spokesperson for CP Foods also prefaced that the products would only arrive in “one to two months.”
The delay is due to import documentation, sales channels, and packaging design requirements that are yet to be completed.
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Featured image adapted from Gourmet Market Thailand.