The Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) of Singapore began to test imported Norwegian salmon for heavy metals, local daily Todaysaid on Wednesday.

Assuring the public that the Norwegian salmon sold here are safe for consumption, the AVA took this step after Russia was reported to have found "dangerously high levels of lead and cadmium" in the fish and imposed a ban on them from Jan. 1, 2006.

The AVA was quoted as saying that imported salmon has been inspected thoroughly and systematically while laboratory checks focused on "higher-risk items" such as pathogens, contaminants and residues in the past.

Some 197 tons of salmon were imported from Norway to Singapore last year, accounting for 77 percent of the total import by the city state.

The report added that the Norwegian Food Inspectorate has said there is no basis for Russia's claims and offered to conduct a joint inspection of Norwegian salmon production.

Source: Xinhua