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HEALTH THREAT IN THE EU

Tonnes1 of liquid egg contaminated in Germany have entered the UK.

Health officials insist that the liquid, used in foods such as pastries and mayonnaise, poses2 a very low risk3 to human health. They are now trying to determine how the liquid egg has entered the food chain4.

The contamination originated in Germany, where up to 3,000 tonnes of animal feed5 containing dangerous levels of dioxin6 were sent to poultry7 and pig farms. Tests on eggs from affected farms had been found to contain up to five times the legal European Union limit for dioxin.

Germany closed more than 4,700 farms as a result. Health inspectors have checked on all the farms suspected of using the feed and they must remain closed for the moment. German consumers should buy only organic eggs and meat until inspections have been completed.

The scare is costing German farmers €60m (£50m) a week as egg sales have plummeted8.

Texto adaptado de: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/jan/07/dioxin-alert-eggs-enter-uk-german-farms

Vocabulary:

(1) tonnes: toneladas

(2) poses: posee, presenta

(3) low risk: riesgo bajo

(4) food chain: cadena alimentaria

(5) animal feed: comida para animales

(6) dioxin: dioxina

(7) poultry farm: granja avícola

(8) plummeted: caído empicadas

 

Imagen de wikimedia, bajo licencia de Creative Commons

 

a) Answer the following questions according to the information given in the text.

1. What kind of food is made with the contaminated liquid from eggs?

2. What kind of eggs and meat are not contaminated?

b) Are these statements TRUE or FALSE?

1.- …...There is a great risk to human health if you eat a contaminated egg.

2.- …...Egg sales in Germany have decreased radically.

3.- …...The contamination originated in the UK.

4.- …...The eggs contain double the dioxin limit permitted by the European Union.