TESCO STORES in Ireland have removed a number of egg-based items from their shelves as a precaution following the suspected contamination of goods sourced from Germany.
The scare began earlier this week when nearly 5,000 German farms were closed as a result of animal feed containing dangerous levels of dioxins being sent to poultry and pig farms.
Despite restrictions on the affected premises, some contaminated products were transported to Britain, through the Netherlands, in the form of liquidised egg, which can be used in foods such as pastries.
According to the Food Safety Authority of Ireland, no contaminated products have entered this country. However, Tesco has taken the precautionary measure of removing a number of items that could possibly be affected.
These include Tesco’s caterpillar cake, party tray bake, coconut, raspberry and Victoria sponge cakes, along with their value raspberry sponge and vanilla and Christmas chocolate party tray bakes.
The Food Safety Authority said it was continuing to liaise with the European Commission and, according to information it had received from the German authorities, none of the contaminated animal feed or food had entered Ireland.
Meanwhile, supermarkets in Britain have been advised to clear their shelves of suspected foods by the UK Food Standards Agency.
In Ireland, the Food Safety Authority said it was unlikely that any of these products had made their way to Irish stores but nonetheless it was liaising with the UK agency.
It also stated that any contaminated eggs would be so diluted from pasteurisation as to present only a very low health risk, with dioxin levels being reduced to below legal thresholds.
The food scare originated in the northwestern German state of Lower Saxony, where more than 3,000 tonnes of animal feed containing dangerous levels of dioxin were sent to poultry, cattle and pig farms.
Tests on eggs from affected farms had been found to contain up to five times the legal EU limit for dioxin.
Dioxin, a byproduct of burning rubbish and industrial activities, can cause miscarriages and other health problems in humans, including cancer.
Restrictions have been imposed on a precautionary basis on 4,709 farms in Germany known to have received the suspect feed. These restrictions do not allow the movement of animals from these farms.
They will only be lifted when it can be demonstrated that animals from these farms are in compliance with the legal limits.