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3 November 2004
AMSTERDAM — The Ministry for Agriculture in the Netherlands has ordered the closure of about 140 farms as a precautionary measure because of a dioxin scare.
The decision, which affects farms with cattle, pig, sheep or goat herds, was taken after dioxin traces were discovered in milk at a cattle farm in Lelystad, north of Amsterdam.
The Food and Product Safety Authority (WVA) said the contamination was caused by mineral clay on potato peel in the cattle’s food.
Agriculture Minister Cees Veerman has ordered tests to verify how much, if any, dioxin is in the meat of the animals who eat the potato peel. Meat from these animals will not be allowed into the human food chain under the results of the tests are studied.
Dioxin, which some scientists believe is carcinogenic, is a general term that describes a group of hundreds of chemicals that are highly persistent in the environment.
[Copyright Expatica News 2004]
Subject: Dutch news, dioxin