Utlang warns Cebuanos against consumption of cheap, ‘hot’ meat

The Department of Veterinary Medicine and Fisheries (DVMF) in Cebu City confiscated on Thursday, June 20, mishandled meat sold at the Carbon Public Market Unit II in Cebu City. | Photo from the Facebook page of Dr. Alice Utlang

CEBU CITY, Philippines –Beware of meat that appears slimy, pale or discolored.

Dr. Alice Utlang, head of the Department of Veterinary of Medicine and Fisheries (DVMF) in Cebu City , said that the so-called hot meat or mishandled meat are no longer fit for human consumption.

She said that the consumption of mishandled meat is dangerous because these may already be contaminated with pathogens.  This can cause stomach pains and loose bowel movement, said Utlang.

Utlang said that these kinds of meat that are mostly imported.  These used to be frozen and were brought out from the freezer for display for a certain period of time.

DVMF inspectors confiscated one ton of mishandled of hot meat from four vendors at the Carbon Public Market Unit II during an operation on Thursday, June 20.

The confiscated meat consisting of chicken and pork meat worth P146, 000 was their biggest haul for the year, Utlang said. These were already disposed in an excavation which they made at the old city zoo lot in Barangay Kalunsan.

Utlang said that the four vendors caught with mishandled meat were already asked to pay a fine of P1, 000 for the first offense. They also risk losing their assigned stalls for their future offenses because DVMF will be making a report of their operation to the City Market Authority that supervises the assignment of vendors’ market stalls.

She also asked marketgoers who were duped into buying mishandled meat to immediately report the matter to her office for proper action.

Utlang said that while they continue to operate against mishandled meat, there are still vendors who continue to put these on display on their stores because these are much cheaper compared to fresh meat.

She asked buyers to scrutinize the meat before any purchase to make sure that what they will get is meat coming from a newly butchered animal. Its transportation should also be covered with a certification issued by the National Meat Inspection Service (NMIS).

“The certification is like a driver’s license. If they are caught transporting meat without certification, they will be penalized and the meat will be confiscated,” said Utlang. /dcb