Cucumbers could be the cause of a major E.coli outbreak in Germany which has killed two people, officials have said.
The country is struggling with the explosion of cases in which 276 sufferers were diagnosed with the rare virulent ‘HUS’ strain — haemolytic uraemic syndrome.
The authorities advised people not to eat cucumbers and to cut raw tomatoes and lettuce from their diets until the outbreak sources were identified.
Those in the north of the country were thought to be more at risk.
German authorities have identified organic cucumbers from Almeria and Malaga in Spain, as one source of the outbreak.
Investigations are ongoing to identify other potential sources, while a third suspect batch of cucumbers from Holland is also under investigation.
Some food products were also withdrawn from the German market.