Consumers crack open eggs at a store in Kochi, claiming that the store was selling artificial eggs. Photo: TV grabThiruvananthapuram: A primary investigation by the Meat and Science Technology unit of the Thrissur Veterinary University has confirmed that news of ‘plastic eggs’ are baseless.
The unit of the university had been collecting samples from complainants following news that the market was being flooded with plastic eggs. Out of the 12 samples collected, none were found to be artificial. The unit of the university also said that it would conduct more tests in order to address concerns of the people. Samples collected from many parts of Kerala also showed that eggs were natural.
Dr George T Oommen, former Meat and Science Technology director, said that tests in March showed that none of the sampled eggs were artificial. He said, ' Eggs cannot be made artificially and we are not importing eggs from China. Even if they are imported, they need to be offloaded at Madras harbor, which is not happening as per records.'
Dr Oommen said that some people were spreading the rumors after they came across rotten eggs. He added that when eggs are frozen for preservation and then transported over long distances, changes could happen to their structure, which could have prompted the scare. He called on people to be careful about misinformation.
Meanwhile the Food Safety Commissioner said that a list of complaints was being prepared in each district and that ‘suspicious eggs’ were being sent to the Meat and Science Technology for tests. Recent samples were sent from Ernakulam and Thrissur.
A merchant in Thampanoor said that customers have become cautious about eggs. The eggs are procured from Namakkal in Tamil Nadu and vendors there said that the rumors about plastic eggs were wrong.
Recently in Kochi, locals confiscated eggs from a supermarket at Ponnurunni near Vytilla, claiming that the store was selling artificial eggs. To prove their point, the consumers cracked eggs in the store and lit the shell and the egg white and it burnt like plastic.
Meanwhile the office of the Director General of Foreign Trade (Kochi) has said that no company has been given permission to import eggs.
