Dioxin scare closes 4,709 German farms
Diet Simon - 07.01.2011 06:59
German regional governments have closed 4,709 chicken, turkey and pig farms as a precaution after a scare over dioxin contamination of animal feed. Most of the farms involved are in Lower Saxony, northwest Germany, and most of them raise pigs. Until they've been checked and found clear of contamination, they will not be allowed to make any deliveries.
It was in Lower Saxony that 2,500 out of the 3,000 tonnes of contaminated fatty acids at the center of the alert were delivered in November and December, where they were used as animal fodder.
The firm Harles und Jentzsch is alleged to have supplied up to 3,000 tonnes of contaminated fatty acids meant only for industrial usage to around 25 animal feed makers. The German government has said that up to 150,000 tonnes of feed are feared to have been contaminated.
The second-most toxic chemical after radioactive waste, dioxin has been found in eggs and poultry in a number of German states and contaminated eggs have been exported to Britain and Holland.
A by-product of burning rubbish and industrial activities, dioxin can cause miscarriages and other health problems in humans, including cancer.
Harles & Jentzsch received toxic products from the Olivet company in the Netherlands. The Dutch food safety authority NWA has defended Olivet, saying it clearly marked the products for ‘technical purposes’.
The NWA said the 136,000 eggs (nine tonnes) imported from contaminated German farms no longer posed a risk. Only a very small amount had been processed by food companies before inspectors tracked down the eggs.
Last week, heightened levels of dioxin were found in eggs and chicken meat in the northwestern German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, the country's most populous.
Two shipments of eggs suspected of being contaminated were exported to Holland and Britain, the European Union said. Eleven of Germany's 16 states are now affected by the scare.
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