Commission Press Release (IP/10/962), 16 July 2010
The Commission has been closely monitoring the situation with the altered mozzarella cheese and production of milk products at the affected establishment in Germany. Information has been provided on the actions taken by the German establishment and the German competent authorities. In addition, the German authorities ensured to monitor the effectiveness of the measures and the compliance of food safety requirements by the food business operator. Based on this information, and the assurances provided, the Commission can communicate that the assurances have been received from the German authorities about the safety of the products produced in the establishment.
The altered mozzarella cheese from the affected establishment had a blue colour to it. It was first spotted in Italy, which notified on June 9 all the Member States and the Commission through the Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF). The altered cheese had also reached other Member States and third countries where the product was withdrawn from the market.
The Commission presented the main findings of the Food and Veterinary Office (FVO) onsite mission performed between June 23 and 25. It identified, among other things, the failure of the company to inform the competent authorities when the contamination was detected. The Commission requested the competent authorities to provide full guarantees that the source of contamination has been eliminated and the bacteriological quality of the milk products has been restored. These guarantees have now been received on 15 July from the German competent authorities.
For the previous news item on this story, see: 2 July 2010 HYGIENE - EU experts confirm production of milk-products can resume only if they are safe