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| Europe |
| Italy: Mozzarella safe again, govt says |
| 2008-04-29 |
| (ANSA) - Rome, April 29 - Extensive testing has ensured that Italy's famed buffalo mozzarella is once again completely safe to eat, outgoing Agriculture Minister Paolo De Castro said on Tuesday. Speaking after weeks of checks on nearly 1,000 buffalo herds, the minister said he could guarantee ''with absolute certainty that Campanian mozzarella for sale is completely safe for Italian, European and international consumers''. The testing programme was launched over a month ago after batches of buffalo mozzarella were found to contain dioxins, which may lead to cancer. A number of countries imposed temporary bans on the soft cheese although most of these have since been lifted and the European Commission has praised Italy's handling of the crisis. ''These tests confirm that the dioxin problem was linked to very specific cases, which were swiftly identified,'' De Castro continued. ''Action has been taken and is still under way to ensure the complete elimination of the problem at source''. Since the joint agriculture and health ministry testing programme was launched at the end of March, scientists have analysed 387 batches of buffalo mozzarella created using milk from 959 herds in 140 Campanian dairies. Just 39 of these samples ''do not meet the precautionary limits provisionally established in a plan drawn up with European Union authorities,'' said a statement by the two ministries. The herds that contributed to the 39 contaminated samples have already been isolated since the start of the scare weeks ago, the statement said. None of the samples taken from other herds since then have contained unacceptable levels of dioxins, it added. However, scientists are still trying to identify the original source of the contamination. According to Antonio Limone, commissioner of the Animal Disease Centre for Southern Italy, there are three possibilities. ''The first is toxic waste disposed of illegally, and prosecutors are looking into this,'' he said. ''There have also been reports of numerous fires in the area, suggesting it could have come from the combustion of plastic materials''. The third possibility is the dioxins came from the animal feed, Limone concluded. ''Until we know the answer, our work will continue''. ECONOMIC IMPACT OF SCARE. Another major concern is the economic impact of the scare. One of Italy's largest farming associations, CIA, said the two-week alarm had ''crippled the sector, causing hundreds of millions of euros in damages''. CIA said it hoped for ''swift and fair compensation for those farmers affected'' and urged the government to apply emergency measures such as ''suspending tax contributions and extending loans''. De Castro, who will shortly be replaced when the new government of premier-elect Silvio Berlusconi takes power, admitted the sector would need a great deal of support in coming months but said he was confident it would recover. ''Immediate work is required to encourage consumers to return to the product, and we also need to help the many businesses, farms and processing centres that were hit so hard during the mozzarella crisis. ''However, thanks to the swift action at the start of the scare, the buffalo mozzarella sector should soon regain its role as a key engine for economic development and growth in Campania''. |
| Posted by:mrp |