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Monday 8 December 2008
Irish Tainted Pork - 25 Countries Affected?
Contaminated Irish pig meat may have been exported to up to 25 countries, Ireland’s chief vet said on Sunday, as shops at home and abroad cleared out pork products amid fears of a cancer link.
DUBLIN - Contaminated Irish pig meat may have been exported to up to 25 countries, Ireland’s chief vet said on Sunday, as shops at home and abroad cleared out pork products amid fears of a cancer link.
‘We believe it’s in the order of 20 to 25 countries. It’s certainly less than 30,’ Mr. Paddy Rogan said in comments quoted by the Irish media.
His comments came after ministers on Saturday ordered all pig meat products from the Republic of Ireland to be withdrawn as dioxins, which may cause cancer, were found in slaughtered pigs thought to have eaten contaminated feed.
The recall involved products processed since September 1 sold in Ireland and abroad and has caused panic in the Emerald Isle, where many families would have been buying their traditional Christmas ham in the coming days.
Prime Minister Brian Cowen stepped in to try to calm fears on Sunday, saying it was important the government took ‘whatever measures are necessary’ to build confidence in the industry for the future.
‘The problem has been located. The continuing examination and inquiries will proceed and we must take action to reinforce confidence to the public, and obviously also allow the industry to move on from this point,’ Mr. Cowen said.
Ireland’s Food Safety Authority (FSAI) said it was almost certain that the source of the contamination was industrial oil which mistakenly found its way into pig feed made at an Irish factory, which authorities did not name.
Ireland is a major exporter of pork, with Britain the biggest market and others including Japan, Germany, Russia, France and the United States.
The crisis is another blow to recession-hit Ireland, where the agriculture ministry says about 5,000 people work in the pig meat industry, which is worth about 400 million euros (S$762 million) a year.
The recall involves pork meat, bacon, pork sausages, sausage meat, gammon steaks, offal from pigs, salami, ham, sausage rolls, black pudding and white pudding.
Contaminated Irish pork has been found in France and Belgium, while Britain’s Food Standards Agency advised consumers not to eat pork from Ireland or Northern Ireland for the moment.
Germany said it was taking all Irish pork products off the shelves as a precautionary measure, while Swedish authorities also advised consumers to avoid products containing Irish pork until further notice.
The European Commission announced it was closely monitoring the situation.
Dioxins are toxic chemicals that can have serious health effects, including causing cancers, if there is long-term exposure to them at high levels.
FSAI deputy chief executive Alan Reilly said dioxin levels found in meat samples were between 80 and 200 times above the legal limit.
But he stressed the risk to the public was ‘very, very low’.
‘You would have to be eating products containing these chemicals for 40 years before you would show any signs of illness.’
Mr. Padraig Walshe, president of the Irish Farmers’ Association, said the contamination could cost Irish farmers hundreds of millions of euros.
‘Pork products and by-products are used in food processing in a lot of areas so it is going to be very difficult for the industry to get itself re-established and get customers to buy output again,’ Mr. Walshe told RTE.
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Irish Tainted Pork - 25 Countries Affected?
AFP
8 December 2008
DUBLIN - Contaminated Irish pig meat may have been exported to up to 25 countries, Ireland’s chief vet said on Sunday, as shops at home and abroad cleared out pork products amid fears of a cancer link.
‘We believe it’s in the order of 20 to 25 countries. It’s certainly less than 30,’ Mr. Paddy Rogan said in comments quoted by the Irish media.
His comments came after ministers on Saturday ordered all pig meat products from the Republic of Ireland to be withdrawn as dioxins, which may cause cancer, were found in slaughtered pigs thought to have eaten contaminated feed.
The recall involved products processed since September 1 sold in Ireland and abroad and has caused panic in the Emerald Isle, where many families would have been buying their traditional Christmas ham in the coming days.
Prime Minister Brian Cowen stepped in to try to calm fears on Sunday, saying it was important the government took ‘whatever measures are necessary’ to build confidence in the industry for the future.
‘The problem has been located. The continuing examination and inquiries will proceed and we must take action to reinforce confidence to the public, and obviously also allow the industry to move on from this point,’ Mr. Cowen said.
Ireland’s Food Safety Authority (FSAI) said it was almost certain that the source of the contamination was industrial oil which mistakenly found its way into pig feed made at an Irish factory, which authorities did not name.
Ireland is a major exporter of pork, with Britain the biggest market and others including Japan, Germany, Russia, France and the United States.
The crisis is another blow to recession-hit Ireland, where the agriculture ministry says about 5,000 people work in the pig meat industry, which is worth about 400 million euros (S$762 million) a year.
The recall involves pork meat, bacon, pork sausages, sausage meat, gammon steaks, offal from pigs, salami, ham, sausage rolls, black pudding and white pudding.
Contaminated Irish pork has been found in France and Belgium, while Britain’s Food Standards Agency advised consumers not to eat pork from Ireland or Northern Ireland for the moment.
Germany said it was taking all Irish pork products off the shelves as a precautionary measure, while Swedish authorities also advised consumers to avoid products containing Irish pork until further notice.
The European Commission announced it was closely monitoring the situation.
Dioxins are toxic chemicals that can have serious health effects, including causing cancers, if there is long-term exposure to them at high levels.
FSAI deputy chief executive Alan Reilly said dioxin levels found in meat samples were between 80 and 200 times above the legal limit.
But he stressed the risk to the public was ‘very, very low’.
‘You would have to be eating products containing these chemicals for 40 years before you would show any signs of illness.’
Mr. Padraig Walshe, president of the Irish Farmers’ Association, said the contamination could cost Irish farmers hundreds of millions of euros.
‘Pork products and by-products are used in food processing in a lot of areas so it is going to be very difficult for the industry to get itself re-established and get customers to buy output again,’ Mr. Walshe told RTE.
‘It is a huge blow to the industry.’
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