CAIRO: The European Union is set to begin a five-day tour of Egyptian governorates of Minya and Fayoum today in order to inspect for E. coli in Egyptian seeds. The delegation comes after the EU barred all Egyptian imports after they suspected an E. coli outbreak in Europe was a result of Egyptian fenugreek seeds. Egypt has denied that their seeds are tainted and hope the delegation will prove that the outbreak did not originate from the country. The EU delegation will analyze suspected strains and submit a report on the safety of certain Egyptian seeds before the ban on imports of 15 varieties of Egyptians goods is imposed against Egypt. The European delegation met with the Egyptian Minister of Agriculture and Land Reclamation and his deputies and the Head of the Egyptian Plant Quarantine Ali Suleiman at the Ministry of Agriculture headquarters. “The international fact-finding mission will visit the Minya, Fayoum and Beni Suef governorates,” said Suleiman at a press conference. “An initial report will be issued to each governorate at the end of the civil tour.” The mission comes as the EU ignored both Egyptian and European tests in July, which allegedly proved that the Egyptian fenugreek seeds were safe and free from E. coli bacteria. The agriculture ministry told the European mission in Egypt that it was surprised of the measure adopted by the EU, which does not go in line with the Egyptian-European partnership agreement and affects the Egyptian exports. According to the state-run MENA news agency, the ministry received earlier this month a letter from the European Commission approving the safety of the Egyptian fenugreek. The E. coli outbreak killed over 50 people in Europe since it was first reported in late May. BM
