07/07/2011 (Agence Europe) - Egypt refuses all responsibility for the contamination of the food chain by the deadly Ehec 0104: H4 bacterium in Germany, France and elsewhere in Europe. The day after the ban on the import of certain seeds from Egypt decreed by the EU until 31 October (see EUROPE 10412), the Egyptian authorities said that the consignment of fenugreek exported to Germany in November 2009 and identified by the EU as the most probable link between the two epidemics could not be the cause. This batch contained dried fenugreek seeds, and “scientifically, the bacterium cannot survive on such a dried surface” for so long. Russia has followed the EU's lead and banned imports of seeds from Egypt. (A.N./transl.rt)