Irish Pork and Dioxins

Latest News Update Ireland's Food Safety Authority (FSAI) has confirmed that feed contaminated with dioxins has been fed to some cattle in Ireland. The FSAI has evaluated samples taken from affected herds and is satisfied that these samples raise no public health concern. - more information at www.fsai.ie/news/press/pr_08/pr20081209.asp Irish Government announces that laboratory results on animal feed and pork fat samples, tested by the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI), confirm the presence of dioxins. - See below for further information Dioxin contamination of Irish pork On Saturday (6th December), the Irish Government announced that laboratory results on animal feed and pork fat samples, tested by the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI), confirmed the presence of dioxins. The Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) has required the food industry to recall from the market all Irish pork products produced from pigs slaughtered in Ireland. This recall involves retailers, the hospitality sector and the Irish pig processing sector. Preliminary evidence indicates that the contamination problem is likely to have started in September 2008. Investigations involving the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (DAFF) and the FSAI are continuing to determine the extent of the contamination and to identify the processors and products involved as well as the source of contamination. The FSAI and other food authorities, including the UK Food Standards Agency (FSA), are advising consumers, as a precautionary measure, not to consume Irish pork and bacon products at this time. Dioxins are chemicals that get into food from the environment but they are associated with a range of health effects only when there is long term exposure at relatively high levels. Based on an assessment of international and national data, a short term peak exposure to dioxins is not associated with the adverse health effects observed in the Belgian Dioxin incident in 1999. The FSAI confirms that, as part of its wide ranging deliberations on this aspect, its scientific experts have consulted widely with scientific experts in the European Food Safety Authority and the World Health Organization, as well as with counterpart health risk assessors in the FSA (UK). In addition, the Department of Health & Children has consulted with the Belgian authorities, regarding their population health monitoring. Other sites for more information: 08-12-08 Safety limits and health risks posted by Andrew Wadge - UK FSA Chief Scientist on 'Science, safety and health' www.fsascience.net/2008/12/08/safety_limits_and_health_risks UK FSA advice on Irish meat: update www.food.gov.uk/news/newsarchive/2008/dec/irishupdate FSAI Recall of Irish Pork and Bacon Products www.fsai.ie/news/index.asp Comments Chris Elliott, Professor of Food Safety at Queen's University Belfast, said: "While consumers want (and deserve) food free from chemical contaminants, in this case there does not appear to be any significant risk to health from consumption of the tainted pork products. The contamination of the animal feed itself appears to be the cause of this food scare, as is often the case; it also appears to be limited to the product of one supplier and it should therefore be a quick and simple task to track down the cause of the problem. However, the effects on the Irish pork industry in relation to the loss of consumer confidence will not be so easy to resolve. "Monitoring for Dioxins and other chemicals in foods in a difficult and expensive task. However some more thought must be given to try and identify such problems before food reaches the supermarket shelves." Professor Alan Boobis, Toxicologist at Imperial College London, said: "These compounds take a long time to accumulate in the body, so a relatively short period of exposure would have little impact on the total body burden. One would have to be exposed to high levels for a long period of time before there would be a health risk. "Even the levels detected in these pigs are extremely low and present no immediate cause for concern, but it is prudent of the Irish government to recall the meat while scientists get to the bottom of this contamination." Nicky Paull, President of the British Veterinary Association, said: "The dioxin appears to have come in via contaminated by-products that are used as supplements to pig feed. "Ireland has reacted very responsibly in recalling all pig meat – bearing in mind only 47 farms were affected – as by recalling everything consumers can be much more reassured. "As regards the possible risk to humans dioxin is a carcinogen but there is certainly no acute toxicity risk. I am certain that the human health professionals will be able to give you a better steer on this. It will depend very much on the amount that any one person potentially may have consumed but we are talking about very tiny amounts. When figures are put on safety levels for any chemical there is then added a huge safety index form 100 x to 1000 x so when we hear that the levels found in the meat are 80 – 100 x the safe level we can be reassured that in real terms we are still talking about tiny amounts. However it was absolutely correct to act to remove any risk at all by recalling the products. "Around 90% of UK produced pig meat is produced as farm assured which means there will be good traceability set up both for the pigs themselves but also for the pig feed. This should give us reassurance that if there are any issues regarding this in the UK pig industry the FSA will be able to track any problems closely."