St. John’s, Antigua: The Minister of Agriculture and the Plant Protection Officer views the consumption of the pesky Giant African Snail differently, according to an Observer article.
Plant Protection Officer, Dr. Janil Gore-Francis, said that the quarantine order issued in 2008 on the warning that people should proceed with caution when eating produce reaped from the snail-infested Jolly Hill area, has not been lifted and cautioned that produce planted in the quarantine zones could be prone to contamination if handled improperly.
The Observer said that her warning comes one day after Minister of Agriculture, Hilson Baptise, and Acting Director of Agriculture, Jedidiah Maxime, appearing on Voice of the People, said they are aware that people have been devouring the molluscs without any manifestation of illness.
But Dr. Gore-Francis said she is fearful that if the produce is consumed without being properly cooked or cleaned, this could result in the transfer of diseases affiliated with the snails to human beings which includes meningitis.
“If you will remember, we had indicated that the snail is an agent which can carry disease. We have not tested for that yet and, as such, we treat them as they do have it, and so we still advise that with consumption precaution must be applied,” the plant protection officer said.
The Observer article said that high-risk areas are Jolly Hill, Burma and Cook’s Dump. Concern surfaced recently that the infestation had spread to the Cotton Station on Friar’s Hill Road, but Dr. Gore-Francis said that situation is under control.
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