A salmon supplier in Guangzhou

Norwegian salmon sales plummeted significantly in Guangzhou during China’s weeklong national holiday with some fish suppliers reporting a sales drop of more than 50 percent following rumors the fish is associated with Ebola.

During the seven-day holiday from October 1 to October 7, demand for the fish was soft and many fish suppliers complained the fish moved extremely slowly, Guangdong Aquatic Products Processing and Market Alliance said.

The rumors of the fish causing Ebola disease stem from some Chinese media reports. ISA (Infectious Salmon Anemia) disease was compared to the “Ebola disease” among humans in a story that ended up being circulated widely on WeChat and Weibo. That frightened people, who believed eating salmon could lead to Ebola.

Norwegian salmon

Although health officials clarified that ISA disease can not be transmitted to humans, and that it has nothing to do with Ebola disease, few people still bought salmon.

Norway’s salmon exports to China have been sliding since 2010 after the country awarded the Nobel Peace Prize to Liu Xiaobo, a jailed Chinese dissident, Financial Times wrote. Last month, China announced that it would not import whole salmon fish because of the ISA virus that has been affecting Atlantic salmon.

In June, more than six tons of chilled Atlantic salmon from Norway were destroyed in Shenzhen after testing positive for the virus.

 Photos: Guangzhou Daily; newsinenglish.no