The health ministry is awaiting a laboratory test report on chickens marketed by a certain company, allegedly containing the antibiotic, chloramphenicol, which could be harmful to health.     

Its minister, Liow Tiong Lai, said today the stock had been identified and taken off the shelves as a health precaution.     

He said the ministry would wait for the outcome of the report before deciding on the next course of action.     

Liow said this when asked to comment on a move by the Sarawak government last Thursday, to ban the import of the product with immediate effect, following tests which detected the presence of chloramphenicol.     

The antibiotic is used to treat bacterial infection but can cause side-effects such as vomitting, diarrhoae and headache.

- Bernama