WRITTEN QUESTION P-1523/99

by Hiltrud Breyer (Verts/ALE) to the Commission

(1 September 1999)

Subject: Dioxin measurements in foodstuffs

A letter issued in June 1999 by the German food industry body, BLL, states that the Belgian authorities are declaring end products to be dioxin-free, although the proof is based only on extrapolations relating to seven PCBs. This extrapolation method may possibly be used in the used oil and lubricant field, but not in relation to foodstuffs.

1. Has the Commission been informed about this reprehensible extrapolation method being used by the Belgian authorities?

2. Does the Commission agree that no arbitrary extrapolations should be carried out, owing to the serious potential risks posed by PCBs?

3. Does the Commission share my view that tolerance levels of 1-4 pg/kg are totally absurd and arbitrary, and cannot guarantee that risks to health will be excluded?

4. When will the Commission set limit values for dioxins in foodstuffs and thereby put an end to the scandalous situation in which no limits are calculated and there is irresponsible self-regulation by the food industry?

5. Is the Commission aware that the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has recent studies which show that many more PCBs (in addition to the mere seven named over here) are classed as toxic? Has the Commission seen these studies? What conclusions will it draw therefrom?

Answer given by Mr Byrne on behalf of the Commission

(15 October 1999)

The contamination of foodstuffs reported to the Commission and the other Member States by Belgium on 27 May 1999 concerned abnormal dioxin levels in recycled fatty matter accidentally fed to certain poultry, pigs and bovines.

The Commission has examined the various studies that have been made of this particular contamination. These studies show that this dioxin contamination in fats can be demonstrated by the presence of seven PCB congeners, namely 28, 52, 101, 118, 138, 153 and 180. This detection method is not adapted to other forms of dioxin contamination in a different context: other PCBs should therefore be used as dioxin contamination markers or, in cases in which dioxin contamination is not associated with the presence of PCB, yet other markers. Hence, in each case of accidental dioxin contamination, an attempt is made to identify the most reliable markers, which are not always the most toxic ones.

Because of the time, expense and technical equipment necessary to identify dioxins in food, few laboratories are in a position to perform this type of analysis. In the case of an extended research programme it is therefore always better to rely on less costly and less time-consuming analyses using PCBs, which are reliable markers and make it possible to identify contaminated products and, in certain cases, may indicate the presence of dioxins.

As regards the limit values for dioxins in food, the Commission began an in-depth study of food contamination levels ascertained in several Member States in June 1998. This study belongs in the framework of the scientific cooperation programme between the Member States (SCOOP). The preliminary results of this study, which should be available very shortly, as well as the results of work done at the Joint Research Centre and the Institute for Reference Materials and Measurements (IRMM) should help assess the risk and will therefore be the basis for further reflection.

Pending the availability of information allowing it to pronounce on the limit values for dioxins in food, the Commission is relying on the scientific assessment made by the World Health Organisation (WHO), which recommends a tolerable daily intake (TDI) of 1 to 4 picograms per kilogram body weight for dioxins. In laying down this level the WHO wanted to safeguard human health as much as possible while acknowledging the existence of a background level of dioxins in all industrialised countries. Until 1999 the surveillance plans put in place in these countries, and notably the Member States, were focused on keeping contaminated milk and milk products off the shelves. The Commission will propose to the Member States to test all meat, fish and derived products for dioxins and PCBs as from 2000.