(UKPA) – 15/01/11

German authorities have banned sales of eggs, poultry and pork from a further 934 farms amid new fears that livestock feed has been tainted with the cancer-causing chemical dioxin.

Agriculture Minister Ilse Aigner reacted angrily to the new wave of closures, after a feed producer in Damme, Lower Saxony, admitted it had not previously disclosed its connection with the firm which delivered contaminated ingredients.

The closures included 110 egg producers, 403 pig-fattening farms and 248 piglet farms, the ministry said. The feed producer in Damme was seemingly supplying farms across North Rhine-Westphalia, Brandenburg and Bavaria.

The Lower Saxony state prosecutor is examining the case for potential gross negligence – the state Agriculture Ministry said, it was investigating to try to discover why the firm, “delivered the complete lists [of suppliers] late and only after massive pressure from the authorities.”

She said their sales were banned to avoid the spread of possibly tainted products.

Aigner urged the state's governor to hold those responsible for failing to properly oversee the feed producer to account "by tonight". It is particularly embarrassing for Aigner as she visited the Lower Saxony state consumer protection and food safety office on Friday and was emphatically reassured that everything was being done to get the dioxin scandal under control.

The scandal broke last week when investigators found excessive levels of dioxin in eggs and some chickens, leading authorities to freeze sales from thousands of farms as some countries banned German farm products.