§ Dr. David ClarkTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (1) where the pigs on farms in Yorkshire and Hampshire discovered to have eaten pigfeed contaminated with Cyanox 425 were slaughtered;
(2) if he will publish the preliminary results of his tests into the issues of pigs contaminated with Cyanox 425.
§ Mr. MacleanThe Department has been involved in investigations since early this year into a number of cases of Ataxia (hind limb weakness) in breeding pigs. This condition has occurred on over 60 farms, mostly in Yorkshire. Although the condition is not fatal animals suffering from it are often slaughtered for welfare reasons and some 700 animals have been slaughtered in this way, mostly on the farms. Pigs subjected to post-mortem examination exhibited lesions consistent with poisoning by an organophosphorous compound. The common factor between the affected farms was the use of feed from one particular consignment of wheat screenings imported from France. Farmers were warned not to feed suspect material to their animals and the feed supplier withdrew the original material from sale. Samples of the feed were analysed at the central veterinary laboratory. The material was found to be contaminated with Cyanox 425 (widely used in the plastics industry) and Isofenphos, an organophosphorous pesticide which is licensed in France but not in this country. It is believed that the second of these was responsible for the outbreak.
There was no threat to human health. Residues of both these agents in the meat of slaughtered animals were well within internationally recognised safety limits. We believe that none of the animals concerned entered the food chain; but even if they had, the amounts consumed even by an extreme consumer of sows and boarmeat would have been well within the acceptable daily intake prescribed internationally.
I am grateful for the co-operation which has been shown by the feed company and by the manufacturers of 133W Cyanox 425, and I must pay tribute to the high quality of the work carried out by the veterinary investigation service and the central veterinary laboratory. The Department's officials visited France to investigate the circumstances surrounding this contamination and the Department will be pursuing with the French authorities the question of how it arose.
§ Dr. David ClarkTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will list by county the number of farms where pigs have been discovered to have eaten pig feed contaminated with Cyanox 425.
§ Mr. MacleanThe total number of pig farms which received the suspect feed is 106 in all: 93 located throughout Yorkshire, seven in Humberside, one in Nottinghamshire and five in Durham.