German dioxin contamination eggs exported to UK
Baku, January 7 (AZERTAC). Eggs from German farms where animal feed has been contaminated by dioxins have found their way into processed products destined for British food.
The EU executive said 14 tonnes of the liquid food had been exported to the UK but stressed there was a very low risk to human health. The UK`s Food Standards Agency also said there was not thought to be a risk to humans. This was because the eggs would have been diluted with other products. The Food Standards Agency (FSA) said that following the distribution of affected eggs to the Netherlands they were mixed with non-contaminated eggs to make pasteurised liquid egg. This product has been distributed to the UK.
The FSA said in a statement: "The mixing of the eggs will have diluted the levels of dioxins and they are not thought to be a risk to health. "The FSA is currently liaising with the industry and will provide further updates as information becomes available." The alert began when it was discovered thousands of tonnes of animal feed contaminated by highly toxic dioxins had been sent to more than 1,000 poultry and pig farms in Germany. Eggs from those farms were sent to the Netherlands for processing and then on to the UK where they are likely to have been used in the production of a variety of food stuffs including mayonnaise and pastries.
European Commission health spokesman Frederic Vincent told a news conference how the problem had now reached the UK. "Those eggs were then processed and then exported to the United Kingdom... as a 14-tonne consignment of pasteurised product for consumption," he said. "Whether it went into mayonnaise, pastries, I don`t know. So we will probably take a look at this with the UK authorities and see what was done with these eggs." The problem has been traced to oils intended for bio-fuel becoming mixed with oil destined for animal feed. The dioxin was discovered in late December but the extent of the problem was only revealed earlier this week when German officials said 3,000 tonnes of feed had been affected.
Germany has closed more than 4,700 farms, with most of the affected farms in Lower Saxony region in north-west Germany. German officials will brief their EU counterparts next week and the incident could lead to new rules on animal feed. Dioxins are toxins formed by industrial processes and waste burning. They have been shown to contribute to higher cancer rates and to affect pregnant women.
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