Germany suspects contamination in flour from India
German authorities said on Tuesday that they had launched a massive hunt for food products that may have been contaminated with carcinogenics originating from a type of flour made in India.
By Agencies |
BERLIN: German authorities said on Tuesday that they had launched a massive hunt for food products that may have been contaminated with carcinogenics originating from a type of flour made in India.
Several German states and companies targeted products made with Indian guar seed flour, also known as the food additive E412, including yoghurt, sauces, bread, ketchup and baby formula.
In flour distributed by the Swiss company Unipektin to 10 European countries, up to 156 picogrammes of dioxin per gram of fat were discovered, far above the six picogrammes allowed by the European Union, authorities said.
The German consumer affairs ministry said, however, that it did not believe people who had eaten contaminated products were in immediate danger because the flour was generally only used in small quantities.
The ministry held a telephone conference with the relevant state authorities at the end of last week to launch the search for contaminated products.
The agriculture ministry in the southwestern state of Baden-Wuerttemberg said that "several thousand kilograms (pounds)" of guar seed flour had been found and seized at three companies where it had been used in dairy products.
In the western state of Rhineland-Palatinate, several hundred kilograms of the additive were discovered at two firms.
Several German states and companies targeted products made with Indian guar seed flour, also known as the food additive E412, including yoghurt, sauces, bread, ketchup and baby formula.
In flour distributed by the Swiss company Unipektin to 10 European countries, up to 156 picogrammes of dioxin per gram of fat were discovered, far above the six picogrammes allowed by the European Union, authorities said.
The German consumer affairs ministry said, however, that it did not believe people who had eaten contaminated products were in immediate danger because the flour was generally only used in small quantities.
The ministry held a telephone conference with the relevant state authorities at the end of last week to launch the search for contaminated products.
The agriculture ministry in the southwestern state of Baden-Wuerttemberg said that "several thousand kilograms (pounds)" of guar seed flour had been found and seized at three companies where it had been used in dairy products.
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In the western state of Rhineland-Palatinate, several hundred kilograms of the additive were discovered at two firms.
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