SFA approves import of pig's blood product from Thailand after nearly 30 years

Singapore residents will soon be able to enjoy pig's blood again after local authorities approved the import of such products from an accredited slaughterhouse in Thailand.

In an online circular on Wednesday (April 1), the Singapore Food Agency (SFA) said it has granted approval for heat-treated pork blood products from Bangkhla Pig Slaughterhouse after conducting food safety assessments.

Each consignment of pig's blood products from the accredited slaughterhouse must have an official health certificate issued by Thai authorities, which certifies that the import complies with Singapore's animal health and food safety requirements.

"Traders are reminded that pork and pork products can only be imported from SFA-approved sources," the circular stated.

Expected in Singapore stores within 1 to 2 months

CP Foods Singapore will be the importer of pig's blood from Thailand, reported Lianhe Zaobao on Wednesday.

The food distribution firm reportedly told the Chinese publication that it has been selling pre-packaged pasteurised pig's blood curd from Bangkhla Pig Slaughterhouse in Thailand for years.

The pig's blood product - commonly used in pig's organ soup - is expected to hit the shelves of Singapore in another one to two months, the company added. 

Animal blood food products, including pig's blood and duck blood, had been prohibited here since the 1999 Nipah virus outbreak that killed an abattoir worker locally.

Following the major Nipah virus outbreak, Singapore banned the collection of pig blood from the abattoir here, and the abattoir has not supplied pig blood since, according to a 2021 CNA report.

The outbreak also saw the suspension of live pig imports from Malaysia until 2017, when local authorities approved the exportation of livestock from a farm in Sarawak, Malaysia.

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In 2018, a mala hotpot restaurant chain was fined for selling illegally imported duck's blood.

In 2021, a Thai restaurant was found to be selling a dish containing pig blood curd.

SFA said then that animal blood can easily support the growth of bacteria and harbour diseases, and unhygienic harvesting of blood can introduce food borne pathogens into blood food products.

In 2023, a woman who illegally imported food products including ducks' blood, pigs' blood and sheep's blood from China was fined $12,000, reported CNA then.

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lim.kewei@asiaone.com