Fipronil scandal 2017

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Structural formula fipronil

The Fipronil scandal is a multi-state food scandal that was uncovered in the summer of 2017 involving chicken eggs and egg products contaminated with the insecticide fipronil . The responsible authorities gave late and insufficient information; Official information on the extent of the scandal was only released successively.

Fipronil exposure became known in Belgium

The insecticide fipronil, a contact poison against skin parasites such as animal lice , mites , ticks , cockroaches and fleas , was probably produced in 2017 by a Belgian manufacturer of the disinfectant and cleaning agent Dega-16 made from eucalyptus oil , menthol and other essential oils, which is approved for use in chicken breeding and production Oils for "product improvement" were added and found their way into the food chain via chicken feed, skin and feathers.

According to the newspaper de Volkskrant , a Dutch poultry company had already used the detergent in June 2016, which is why fipronil-contaminated eggs may have been on the market for more than a year; proof of the exact point in time was no longer possible later.

Red bird mite (blood louse)

In Belgium, the contamination was first noticed in early June 2017 through self-checks by an egg processor and reported to the Federal Agency for the Safety of the Food Chain . This authority initially carried out its own investigations and initiated fraud investigations, including a search of the delivery company; In order not to jeopardize the investigation, a report was only sent to the European Rapid Alert System on July 20 . This delay in consumer information has been criticized from various quarters. The Dutch Food Safety Authority (NVWA) denied having been informed about fipronil in Dutch chicken eggs since the end of 2016. However, there was an anonymous tip that the insecticide was used when cleaning stables to combat the blood louse. The red mite ( Dermanyssus gallinae ), also known colloquially as blood louse, feeds on the blood of various bird species and is one of the most economically important pests in poultry farming in Europe.

The Dutch company ChickFriend , which is entrusted with cleaning work in chicken coops , purchased the product from the Belgian supplier Poultry-Vision . During the search of the supplier, which also sells insecticides, large amounts of fipronil are said to have been found. According to the supplier, the cleaning company supplied was correctly informed about the agent. The supplier is said to have obtained the fipronil from a manufacturer in Romania.

Fipronil exposure becomes known in other countries

Fipronil was detected in chicken eggs from the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany in June, July and August 2017 , although the use of this insecticide is banned in food-producing animals. Shortly afterwards, the substance was also found in imported eggs in Switzerland and Sweden. Up to August 5, 2017, eggs or corresponding products contaminated with fipronil were found in 14 federal states in Germany. The discounters Aldi Nord and Aldi Süd removed all eggs from their range on August 4th. The discounter only accepted deliveries of eggs for which a negative laboratory result from an accredited laboratory or an official sampling was available. On the evening of the same day, the delicatessen salad manufacturer MAYO (part of the Wernsing Group ) also recalled for the first time processed products in which fipronil-contaminated eggs had been used.

On August 11, 2017, the European Commission announced that the eggs contaminated with fipronil had been spread more widely than initially assumed. At that time, 15 EU member states, Switzerland and Hong Kong were affected . 20 tons of contaminated eggs were delivered to Denmark alone. According to the responsible authorities, the exposure to the insecticide was not harmful to health, but it was too high for sale. Contaminated eggs also ended up in France, Austria, Luxembourg and the United Kingdom, among others. One day later, on August 12, 2017, eggs contaminated with fipronil were also discovered in Spain.

Risk assessment and other responses

Fipronil is not approved for use in farm animals that are kept for food production. It is therefore forbidden to use it there for cleaning stables. According to Regulation (EC) 396/2005 on maximum residue levels , a limit of 0.005 mg / kg applies to fipronil and its metabolite, fipronil sulfone, which must not be exceeded.

According to the Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR) dated August 3, 2017, it was unlikely for all population groups that chicken eggs found in Germany would pose a health risk because the residues measured so far were too low. According to the BfR, the highest fipronil content measured to date was found in a sample from Belgium with 1.2 mg per kg egg; this corresponds to 1.6 times the limit value of the acute reference dose (ARfD) for children of 0.72 mg per kg egg. Based on the German consumption model ( NVS II model ), the ARfD is not exceeded for any of the consumer groups examined through the consumption of chicken eggs or chicken meat contaminated with fipronil. According to the BfR, the analytical levels for chicken meat determined so far in Germany are significantly lower than in eggs, at 0.0015 to 0.0156 mg / kg. According to a consumer advocate, an adult with a body weight of 65 kg could eat seven eggs a day and a child weighing 16 kg 1.7 fipronil-contaminated eggs without any risk to their health. The general dietary recommendation for (unpolluted) eggs is only three eggs per week.

The Belgian food authority FAVV announced on August 3rd that the eggs examined up to that point did not reveal any risk to public health , as the European limit values ​​had not been exceeded.

All production companies and packing centers that had purchased Dega-16 were blocked as a precaution until it was clarified whether their products contain fipronil. About 180 (according to other sources 100) holdings in the Netherlands, one in Belgium and some in Lower Saxony with a total of several million contaminated eggs were affected by the lock. The Dutch food control authority Nederlandse Voedselen Warenautoriteit (NVWA) called on the population not to consume eggs from the farms concerned, as a health risk, especially for children, could not be ruled out. Some large grocery chains initially took all Dutch eggs out of sale.

The German Farmers' Association immediately demanded compensation for the chicken farms affected by the illegal use of fipronil, a closed farm results in an average turnover loss of around 4,000 euros per day. Dutch poultry farmers reckoned with losses in the millions: of the approximately 10 billion chicken eggs produced there annually, the majority of the eggs exported (60 to 70%) would go to Germany.

The German Agriculture Minister Christian Schmidt ( CSU ) rejected the criticism z. B. from Bündnis 90 / Die Grünen - parliamentary group leader Katrin Göring-Eckardt backs the inaction of the Federal Ministry by saying that the federal states are responsible for the food control.

Web links

References and comments

  1. ↑ a b c Poison eggs: Minister Schmidt defends himself against criticism. ( Memento of the original from August 5, 2017 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. In: Badische-zeitung.de , August 5, 2017.  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.badische-zeitung.de
  2. ↑ How an insecticide got into chicken eggs. In: FAZ.net . 2nd August 2017.
  3. ↑ a b "Seven eggs a day are harmless to health". In: Badische-zeitung.de , August 5, 2017.
  4. ↑ Scandal about contaminated eggs spreads . In: tagesschau.de . 2nd August 2017.
  5. ↑ Organic eggs also contaminated with insecticide . In: Zeit Online . 2nd August 2017.
  6. ↑ Peter van Ammelrooy, Dion Mebius, Joris van Venrooij: Gifeieren uit Drenthe mogelijk al meer dan een jaar overcooked. In: volkskrant.nl. August 2, 2017, accessed August 12, 2017 (Dutch).
  7. ↑ Fabian Brock Otter: Belgian-Dutch Fipronil scandal Expand's. In: Poultryworld. July 27, 2017, accessed August 4, 2017 .
  8. ↑ Egg scandal: Netherlands deny allegations from Belgium because of Fipronil. In: Spiegel Online . August 9, 2017. Retrieved August 11, 2017 .
  9. ↑ Red bird mite or blood louse , August 7, 2017 5:09 am, DPA
  10. ↑ The pesticide is banned in the EU for laying hens and other farm animals. ( Memento of the original from August 4, 2017 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. In: Frankfurter Neue Presse , August 4, 2017. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.fnp.de
  11. ↑ Herman Zaalberg, Rianne van Vuren, Jan balances, Jan Born: Advocaat Poultry vision: Chick Friend wel geïnformeerd. In: EenVandaag.nl. August 3, 2017, accessed August 12, 2017 (Dutch).
  12. ↑ Sven Röbel: Trail leads to a Romanian chemical factory. In: Spiegel Online. 4th August 2017.
  13. ↑ A. Kockartz: Fipronil: The egg scandal is expanding. In: deredactie.be. August 2, 2017. Retrieved August 12, 2017 .
  14. ↑ Traces of fipronil found in M-Budget eggs. In: 20 minutes online. August 4, 2017. Retrieved August 12, 2017 .
  15. ↑ First dealer recalls products with processed Fipronil eggs. In: finanznachrichten.de . August 4, 2017. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  16. ↑ Agrarheute .com: Fipronil: Aldi removes all eggs from the sale ( memento of the original from August 13, 2017 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , August 4, 2017 @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.agrarheute.com
  17. ↑ Return: Fipronil contaminated eggs in delicatessen salads from MAYO Feinkost GmbH. In: produktwarnung.eu. August 4, 2017. Retrieved August 12, 2017 .
  18. ↑ Fipronil eggs even more widespread ( memento of the original dated August 12, 2017 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. In: heute.de . 11th August 2017. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.heute.de
  19. ^ Poison eggs also discovered in Spain In: tagesschau.de . August 12, 2017
  20. ↑ GALAB: Fipronil in animal products
  21. ↑ Video from the press conference on fipronil in eggs. In: Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture online. 3rd August 2017.
  22. ↑ Contaminated Eggs: How Dangerous Is Fipronil? In: Pharmaceutical Newspaper Online . August 2, 2017. Retrieved August 4, 2017 .
  23. ↑ Health assessment of the individual data on fipronil content in food of animal origin, as documented in Belgium. In: Federal Institute for Risk Assessment online. July 30, 2017.
  24. ↑ Fipronil in eggs. In: produktqualitaet.com. August 9, 2017. Retrieved August 12, 2017 .
  25. ↑ Fipronil in eggs. In: produktqualitaet.com. FAVV, August 3, 2017, accessed August 12, 2017 (Dutch).
  26. ↑ KAT statement on fipronil. In: was-haben-auf-dem-ei.de. Association for controlled alternative forms of animal husbandry e. V., August 2, 2017, accessed August 12, 2017 .
  27. ↑ Federal Minister of Agriculture Schmidt sees no omissions. In: DLF24 . August 5, 2017 (only seven days online)
  28. ↑ Risk factor egg. In: DLF24. 4th August 2017.