We have banned eating pork in restaurants, but we have not banned eating pork altogether: Pashinyan

The Prime Minister of Armenia, Nikol Pashinyan, addressed the concerns of pig farmers during a question-and-answer session with the National Assembly today regarding the temporary ban on restaurant operations. The Prime Minister stated that if a food establishment worker contracts the coronavirus and then infects their parents, there could be repercussions, with individuals questioning why the government did not recognize the danger and close down.

He announced that a package to provide significant support to agriculture and businesses will be adopted at the government session tomorrow. The Prime Minister expressed hope that they will also address social and quasi-social issues.

“Tomorrow we plan to adopt five packages related to this crisis situation. Our logic here is as follows: we do not accept the idea of 'let's just distribute money,' we say we need to help in a targeted manner, and those companies that are ready to accept the challenge of being competitive in the post-coronavirus period, along with new provisions for pig farming, we have also included a credit component. However, we have structured it so that we are providing loans at zero percent interest, but we have also added a banking component because we are confident that if we do not include a third component, corrupt mechanisms will begin to operate,” he said.

The Prime Minister emphasized that they have banned eating pork in restaurants, but have not banned eating pork altogether; people can consume it in their homes, and during this period of suspension of restaurant operations, pork supplies may accumulate in stores.