The FSA has calmed fears following claims that salmon potentially containing dioxins above EU safe limits has been exported to other EU member states by Swedish companies.
The National Food Agency in Sweden has identified around 180 tonnes of the Baltic salmon that has been exported to other EU countries in the past two years. It believes the salmon could potentially contain dioxins above the EU limit but currently has no evidence either way.
In 2002, the EU banned the sale of Baltic salmon and herring that contains dioxins above certain levels outside of Sweden, Latvia and Finland. It can still be sold in those countries even if dioxin levels are above EU limits, but it must be marketed with a warning.
Today, an FSA spokesperson told The Grocer: “There is no evidence to suggest that Baltic salmon for sale in the UK has levels of dioxins above those set by the EU.”
The National Food Agency confirmed the FSA’s opinion. Jan Sjögren, head of the agency’s control and support division, said as far as it knew, the salmon had only been sold to companies in France, the Netherlands and Denmark.
The dioxins can prove harmful to humans – for example, in early brain development. It can also affect reproductive systems. In Sweden, children under 18 and those of fertile age are advised to eat no more than three portions of Baltic salmon a year. Others are advised to eat it no more than once a week.
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