KUALA LUMPUR, June 27 — Salahuddin Ayub today congratulated the Malaysian Quarantine and Inspection Services (Maqis) for successfully detecting and stopping two container loads of canned fish that were infested with worms from entering the country.

The agriculture and agro-based industry minister said congratulations were in order for Maqis, adding that he hoped the body will keep up the good work.

“This is one of the responsibilities of the Agro Ministry, because the issue of food safety that we have to oversee is not only down to having enough food for people to buy.

“The most important is the quality of the food, so I hope in the future that the Maqis team will be even better at their work,” he said.

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Salahuddin explained the two containers were found during a spot check after arriving from China.

The containers were carrying about 36,720kg of canned fish, from the Ranesa brand, labelled as Kent Mackerel in tomato sauce.

He said the value of the seizure was RM199,797 and the shipment had entered the country via the North Butterworth Container Terminal (NBCT) in Penang on May 14.

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Salahuddin added the species of worm in the canned fish was determined to be Anisakis parasite worms, which are known to spread anisakiasis, an infection that can cause diarrhoea, nausea and vomiting.

He said action would be taken against the local importer, while the stock would be returned to its vendors in China.