Rwanda reportedly bans sale of unrefrigerated meat

According to a report, Rwandan officials have since Tuesday prohibited traders from selling meat that has not been refrigerated for at least 24 hours.

According to the National Agency for Quality Control, Competition, and Consumer Protection (Rica), unrefrigerated fresh meat includes microorganisms that could cause illnesses in consumers.

According to Rica veterinarian Mbabazi Olivier, "the repercussions of eating without cooling in the refrigerator is that there are still diseases in the tissues of the animal's body that have not perished." This was stated on the news website Kigali Today.

According to experts, refrigerating food does not actually kill microorganisms; rather, it slows bacterial growth so that food can be preserved for an extended period of time before going bad.

However, according to the website, some local vendors claimed that the order would result in their losses because some consumers favored freshly slaughtered meat.

The BBC has written to the Rwandan government to request clarity on the situation.