When eating seafood, one of the main criteria is to have the freshest ones possible. In some cases, they are cooked alive to maintain their freshness and prevent food poisoning.
However, there are also schools of thought where people are encouraged to kill livestock and seafood as humanely as possible, before cooking them.
Hong Kong actress Myolie Wu recently came under fire after posting a Weibo vlog on Oct 16, where she tried out fresh seafood in Qingdao, China.
In one of the beginning shots of the vlog, the footage showed a close-up of some raw seafood in a pot, such as prawns, oysters, scallops, mantis shrimps, clams, octopus and other crustaceans.
The ingredients were so fresh that some of them were still wriggling around in the pot.
In the next shot, a staff member removed the pot lid, revealing that the seafood had been cooked.
The 42-year-old can be heard exclaiming in the background, saying: "Wow, what a scrumptious seafood meal!"
She picked an octopus up from the pot and said that it was one of her son's favourite foods, commented that the seafood was so fresh and gave a thumbs-up.
Myolie also tried out other seafood dishes, including a baked shellfish dish topped with garlic and barbecued squid on skewers, among others.
While she was seen to have a good time, her experience also sparked a discussion among netizens, with many criticising her for her actions.
One netizen wrote: "It's too cruel to cook them alive."
"You dare to eat this?" another netizen commented.
Another netizen said: "Oh my gosh! The octopus was still alive, I don't dare to eat it. Such a poor thing!"
Despite that, there were others who commented that the food looks good, and wanted Myolie to recommend the restaurant to them.
"Wow, it looks mouth-watering and I feel like eating it, please bring me along," one wrote.
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