The Agriculture Ministry of the state of Lower Saxony has said that approximately 73,000 eggs due to be sold across six German states are contaminated with the insecticide fipronil.

The new contaminated batch of eggs from the Netherlands arrived on supermarket shelves in Lower Saxony, Baden-Württemberg, Hesse, Bavaria, Schleswig-Holstein and North Rhine-Westphalia, the ministry said Monday. A recall of the eggs has been initiated.

2017 contamination

The news of the contaminated eggs comes less than a year after it became public that fipronil, a toxic anti-lice agent banned from use in products for human consumption, had found its way into millions of eggs in the Netherlands.

The result was a huge fallout for Dutch authorities. Millions of eggs had to be taken off the market in Germany and other European countries, and several hen farms had to be closed in the Netherlands.

Cause unclear

Altogether, a total of 97,200 eggs were delivered between May 17 and June 4 from the Netherlands to a packing center in the district of Vechta, in Lower Saxony. The state's ministry was informed about the new contamination on Friday.

The scope and cause of the contamination remains unclear.

Food scandals in Germany Toxic eggs Millions of eggs had to be recalled in Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany after they were found to contain the insecticide fipronil. The highly toxic substance can cause damage to the liver, thyroid glands and kidneys if ingested in large amounts. More than 150 poultry farms in the Netherlands had to be shut down and a number of German supermarkets pulled eggs from their shelves.

Food scandals in Germany Beef with Brazil A number of countries banned meat imports from Brazil in March 2017 after a police investigation found meat packers had been selling rotten produce. In some cases, carcinogenic chemicals had been used to mask the smell of bad meat. Germany imported around 114,000 tons of meat and meat products from Brazil in 2016. But German authorities said no tainted meat had been sold in the country.

Food scandals in Germany Mice in Bavarian bakeries Earlier this year, German consumer protection group Foodwatch reported that mold and mice had been uncovered in several large-scale Bavarian bakeries. The watchdog cited the results of 69 inspections between 2013 and 2016. Rodent hair and chew marks were found on one bakery's goods. Another establishment had cockroaches crawling through flour and a mound of rodent feces baked into a wheat roll.

Food scandals in Germany Horsemeat lasagna anyone? In 2013, millions of people across Europe discovered that a number of meat products passed off as being pork or beef were in fact horsemeat. It all started when Irish food safety inspectors detected horsemeat in frozen beef burgers. Further investigation found that ready-to-eat meals in a number of EU countries, including Germany, also contained horsemeat.

Food scandals in Germany Strawberry surprise In 2012, more than 11,000 German schoolchildren were taken ill with vomiting and diarrhea because they ate from the same batch of deep-frozen strawberries. The mass food poisoning spanned almost 500 schools and day care centers in the east of the country. Fortunately, many of the victims had a speedy recovery. Only 32 were taken to hospital.

Food scandals in Germany Dioxin health scare In early 2011, thousands of German farms, most of them in the state of Lower Saxony, were temporarily shut after they received animal feed laced with dioxine. German officials said the tainted feed had been fed to hens and pigs, contaminating eggs, poultry meat and some pork. Contaminated exports were shipped as far as Britain, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands and Poland.

Food scandals in Germany E. coli outbreak Also in 2011, a strain of Escherichia coli O104:H4, a bacteria found in vegetables, caused a deadly outbreak of illness in northern Germany. More than 4,000 people were infected - showing symptoms like bloody diarrhea and hemolytic uremic syndrome, which can lead to kidney failure. More than 50 people died. A sprout farm in Lower Saxony is believed to be the source of the outbreak.



av/cmk (dpa, AFP)

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