Norwegian salmon was not source of virus at Beijing food market, Norway says (updated)

Austevoll Seafood ASA

17/06/2020 09:55

(Adds background, share price)
    OSLO, June 17 (Reuters) - Chinese and Norwegian authorities
have concluded that Norwegian salmon was likely not the source
of the novel coronavirus that was found at cutting boards in a
Beijing food market, the Norwegian fisheries and seafood
minister said on Wednesday.  
    Following a meeting between Chinese and Norwegian officials
on Tuesday, both countries have concluded that the source of the
outbreak did not originate with fish from the Nordic country,
Odd Emil Ingebrigtsen said.
    "We can clear away uncertainty and the halt in salmon export
to China," he told a video conference including journalists.
    The resurgence of COVID-19 in the Chinese capital over the
past six days has upended daily life for many, with some fearing
the entire city is headed for a lockdown as the number of new
cases mounts. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL4N2DU08O
    China halted imports of European salmon following reports on
Saturday that the virus was discovered on equipment used for
handling the fish at Beijing's Xinfadi market, prompting
supermarkets in the Chinese capital to remove salmon from their
shelves.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL8N2DS2JC
    Norwegian salmon producers saw orders from China cancelled
over the weekend, although Norway's Food Safety Authority said
there was no evidence fish could be infected.
    Shares of Norwegian salmon farmers, which had fallen on
Monday, rose on Wednesday with market leader Mowi  MOWI.OL  up
3.6% and Salmar  SALM.OL  up 2.5% at 0840 GMT.

 (Reporting by Victoria Klesty, writing by Gwladys Fouche,
editing by Terje Solsvik)
 ((gwladys.fouche@tr.com; +47 23 31 65 94; Reuters Messaging:
gwladys.fouche.reuters.com@reuters.net; Twitter handle:
@gfouche))