Brussels, 10/01/2011 (Agence Europe) - The scare over German eggs and meat contaminated with dioxin is far from over within the EU and, for the first time, outside its borders there been the first embargo measures, but the European Commission is still taking pains to reassure, in light of the data at its disposal, and the low level of potential contamination (EUROPE 10289 and 10288).
On Monday 10 January, the Commission confirmed that Denmark, Italy and France had imported potentially contaminated products, but the situation was under control. In Denmark, the eggs were not put on the market because they were destined for laying hens. In France, it is believed that the batch of suspect eggs contained levels of dioxin below the limit authorised in the EU (3 picograms per gram of fat). According to the French agriculture minister, the European alert network RASFF made it possible to discover that a hatchery in Isère had received “a batch of feed from a German producer”, but the production of eggs was not destined for human consumption. “According to the German authorities, the products in question conform to the rules in force on dioxin. Nonetheless, investigations are underway to ensure that the concentration of dioxin in these batches is below the tolerable standards” and “as a precaution, the farm has been placed under supervision pending the results of the additional analysis”, states and ministerial press release published on Monday. On the website of its food safety agency, the United Kingdom has published information on what has happened to suspect eggs processed since mid-December, proving the effectiveness of traceability.
On the other hand, the Commission denies the fact that Slovakia has taken embargo measures on German exports. “Slovakia told us on Friday that it was to carry out checks,” Frédéric Vincent, spokesperson to Commissioner John Dalli (Health, Consumer Protection) told the press. He added: “The only non-EU country to have suspended imports is South Korea, on Wednesday, for pork meat from Germany. This is a disproportionate measure given the situation in Germany. DG SANCO will discuss the matter with the Korean authorities”.
The investigation into the traceability of products continues in Germany and Europe to identify batches of animal feed sold from German factories and to withdraw them from the market. On Friday, the number of quarantined German farms was 4700. It had fallen to 1635 by Monday morning. To put the scale of the matter into proportion, Frédéric Vincent stressed that “there are 400,000 farms in Germany and some 500 million eggs are eaten in the EU every day”. It is impossible at this stage to know how far the contamination dates back and whether it is of criminal origins. It is up to the German legal authorities to investigate. The Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health of the EU will take stock of the situation this Tuesday and Wednesday. (A.N./transl.fl)