Shiloh
Editor, Senior Moderator
Source: http://www.zawya.com/story/Dates_sales_take_a_big_hit_over_MERS_rumors-ZAWYA20130713034640/
Jul 13 2013
Dates sales take a big hit over MERS rumors
By DIANA AL-JASSEM
...Many expatriates and Saudis are no longer eating the fruit because they fear contracting the disease. Many news reports have been published on the Internet to warn people they should only eat dates if they wash them well...
...The rumors started circulating recently because of an incorrect understanding of a study published recently by a team of researchers that found the virus in bats in "Europe and beyond." Without reading the study carefully, people in the Middle East thought bats living in palm trees in this region were infecting dates...
...There has been no confirmation yet from any official body in the Kingdom or elsewhere that bats are responsible for the spread of MERS in Saudi Arabia.
Date traders here say sales are down.
Abu Ali, who sells dates at a vegetable souk, said: "We've noticed that demand for dates is lower this year.
For example, we only receive customers who are elderly and almost only Saudis," he said...
Jul 13 2013
Dates sales take a big hit over MERS rumors
By DIANA AL-JASSEM
...Many expatriates and Saudis are no longer eating the fruit because they fear contracting the disease. Many news reports have been published on the Internet to warn people they should only eat dates if they wash them well...
...The rumors started circulating recently because of an incorrect understanding of a study published recently by a team of researchers that found the virus in bats in "Europe and beyond." Without reading the study carefully, people in the Middle East thought bats living in palm trees in this region were infecting dates...
...There has been no confirmation yet from any official body in the Kingdom or elsewhere that bats are responsible for the spread of MERS in Saudi Arabia.
Date traders here say sales are down.
Abu Ali, who sells dates at a vegetable souk, said: "We've noticed that demand for dates is lower this year.
For example, we only receive customers who are elderly and almost only Saudis," he said...