Following the findings of the German hygiene authorities last week, which uncovered health risks due to the use of contaminated feed, Slovakia reacted first by banning poultry and egg imports from the country.
The contaminated meat has increased levels of the carcinogenic substance dioxin, but the European Union said a meat ban is not necessary and overreacting, while Germany is claiming the levels of dioxin are within admissible limits. The farms in question have been shut down and suspect products recalled.
The Slovak Ministry of Agriculture announced that it had imposed checks on shops and warehouses to search for products that may contain the dioxin poison and that the ban would remain in place until it had laboratory test results from eggs and poultry from Germany.
Agriculture minister Zsolt Simon announced at a press conference today that the results of the tests should be known tomorrow evening or on Wednesday. He informed that some 1.09 million eggs had been imported from Germany in December 2010, which had all been sold on retail shelves. Another 356,000 eggs were brought in in January, but are being held in a sorting warehouse in Ruzomberok.