May 30, 2007

Germany rejects meat from Poland

The sanitary services in Berlin district of Moabit in Germany have rejected meat from Poland, stating the commodity as "health-threatening".

German authorities say that no more tests were conducted as the meat "looked so bad" that they immediately arrested five tonnes of Polish turkey.

Germany also claimed Poland not only failed to meet requirements but also exported meat without the proper documents.

After studying meat samples, the veterinary and sanitary services and experts from the institute of food, medicines and animal diseases passed their verdict - the meat is unfit for consumption.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel previously declared that the European Union was unanimously interested in an early lifting of a ban on meat imports from Poland. But this position may change especially after President Vladimir Putin said that the arrest of Polish meat in Germany confirmed its problematic quality.

Earlier, Poland has been arguing that Moscow's ban on Polish meat was politically-motivated as Warsaw vetoed the adoption of a new EU-Russia agreement. In response to the accusation, Putin said that Minister of Agriculture Alexei Gordeyev, has emphasized the quality of Polish meat was the main reason for the prohibition and should be settled by experts.

Warsaw is defending the Berlin incident should be seen as a single case and unfair practices of an individual supplier. However, Berlin officials refuted this claim stating Poland's mishandling of exports without proper documents is a clear indication that Polish meat exporters are negligent and can cause more harm by inflicting health-damaging products.