PM chomps down on onion

Good government sometimes means risking bad breath.

Prime Minister Tony Abbott has surprised onlookers while on a factory visit in rural Tasmania, by biting into and eating a mouthful of raw onion.

He does not flinch and appears to enjoy the taste of the vegetable, which is an Australian staple when well cooked and usually also doused in sauce.

Vision of the onion eating is circulating widely on social media, where the reaction is mixed.

"You've got to admit, eating an onion is a pretty good metaphor for the Abbott government overall," Victorian Labor MP Tim Watts wrote on Twitter.

Crikey politics editor Bernard Keane also tweeted "OK he ate a raw onion. OK. I think I actually respect Abbott more now. A raw onion. That he ate. Raw."

Others questioned whether is was a display of the same judgment that led Mr Abbott to controversially hand a knighthood to Prince Philip.

Cartoonist Jon Kudelka offered "Minister For Onion Breath".

The hashtags #onion and #oniongate were trending widely late on Friday.

Mr Abbott was visiting Charlton Farm Produce in northern Tasmania.

It was not a great week for the prime minister on social media, with his St Patrick's Day address on YouTube also drawing criticism for allegedly being patronising.