USDA discovers poop bacteria in Dutch veal

The USDA (the US Department of Agriculture) has discovered a dangerous bacteria in a batch of Dutch veal. This is an STEC variant of the E.coli bacterium (poop bacteria) that is especially dangerous for children and the elderly.

The USDA announced last week that a consignment of veal weighing more than 700 kilograms was involved. Later it turned out that the party is probably even bigger. The meat has been sold in the states of California, Florida, Michigan and Massachusetts.

Consumers are urged not to eat the meat. The consequences of infection with this STEC variant are popularly referred to as "hamburger disease". This disease affects kidney function. 

Long time import ban
Dutch veal has only been allowed to return to the United States since September last year. Before that, the US had an export ban for almost 20 years. This import ban was imposed after the BSE outbreaks in Europe and disagreements with hormone meat.   

Wouter Job

Wouter Baan is editor-in-chief of Boerenbusiness. He also focuses on dairy, pig and meat markets. He also follows (business) developments within agribusiness and interviews CEOs and policymakers.

w.baan@boerenbusiness. Nl

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