Coronavirus does not spread through chicken, mutton, seafood: FSSAI chief

re is scientific evidence to show that coronavirus spres through eating chicken, mutton and seafood, FSSAI chief G S G Ayyangar said on Thursday and asserted that virus would t survive in higher temperature.

"It is basically an animal virus. Let us leave it to scientists to figure out how it has been transmitted...however, ours is a tropical country and once temperature crosses 35-36 degrees celsius, virus will survive. "Let us pray to God that winter ends and temperature rises," he said. re are at least 29 confirmed cases of coronavirus infection in India. Amid apprehensions that infection could spre through eating chicken, mutton and seafood, Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) CEO said re is a misconception about it.

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"re is a misconception that coronavirus will spre through chicken, mutton and seafood. re is thing like that. It is scientifically t proven. "I am a scientist, I will t buy this argument," Ayyangar told reporters here. Ayyangar, who was earlier with Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), said it is a matter of time that vaccine for coronavirus will be developed as India has a good track of handling viruses.

"Wher it is Ebola virus or Avian flu, we have handled m very well. It is a matter of time. We have to take precaution. We have to be on our toes," he said. Urging people to take precautions, he said coronavirus is like many or viruses and developing a vaccine will depend on complexity of virus.

government is making all efforts to isolate virus. "Once we are able to isolate virus, n it takes sometime to find a vaccine to counter virus," he said at an event organised by industry body Assocham. dressing event on nutrition and functional foods, Hexagon Nutrition Managing Director Vikram Kelkar said prices of vitamin supplements have been volatile recently and spre of coronavirus has affected supply across world.

On March 2, poultry breeders demanded a relief pack from government claiming that sector has incurred heavy losses of around Rs 1,750 crore in a month due to fake news that eating chicken could spre coronavirus.

Poultry bird prices have plunged to Rs 10-30 per kg at farm gate level due to a slump in chicken demand while aver cost of production is Rs 80 per kg, All India Poultry Breeders Association h said in a representation to Ministry of Animal Husbandry.

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