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State Inspectorate: No Indications That Food from the Osijek Area is Unhealthy After the Catastrophic Fire

Osijek - Fotografija iz zraka pozara uskladistene plastike na otvorenom prostoru u pogonu osjecke tvrtke "Drava international" kod prigradskog naselja Brijest.
Osijek - Fotografija iz zraka pozara uskladistene plastike na otvorenom prostoru u pogonu osjecke tvrtke "Drava international" kod prigradskog naselja Brijest. / Image by: foto Pixsell

There is no risk to consumer health if they have consumed food produced near the recent fire at the waste management facility in Osijek owned by Drava International. These are, however, preliminary results of the analysis based on the tested parameters, according to the conclusion of the preliminary assessment, as reported by the State Inspectorate of the Republic of Croatia (DIRH), which sent agricultural, sanitary, and veterinary inspections to that part of Slavonia. They stated that DIRH inspectors have continuously sampled soil, herbs, food, and animal feed in the area near the fire site.

The Croatian Food Agency has prepared a preliminary risk assessment based on the received partial results of analyses for cadmium, lead, and PAHs for 31 samples, including 20 samples of fruits and vegetables taken from the market and 11 samples of primary products. As results of other analyses arrive, DIRH will publish them.

Specifically, as stated by the State Inspectorate, a total of 100 samples have been taken. Ten of them relate to soil, 30 samples are of primary products from the fields (soy, sugar beet, corn, sage, clover, etc.), 40 samples of fruits and vegetables from the market (apples, tomatoes, cabbage, lettuce, pumpkin, cucumbers, etc.), 10 samples of eggs and milk, and 10 samples of animal feed.

Considering the intensity of the fire and the type of materials that burned, the 100 samples are being analyzed for the following parameters: heavy metals (lead and cadmium), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs); dioxins, furans, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and organochlorine pesticides, while in the raw material for animal feed, heavy metals, dioxins, and PCBs are analyzed.

The analyses are conducted in authorized national laboratories in accordance with the Law on Official Controls, and part of the analyses for which there are no authorized laboratories in Croatia are performed in accredited EU laboratories.

Finally, DIRH emphasized once again that these are preliminary results for now, and the inspections of the State Inspectorate, in parallel with receiving the results of laboratory analyses and the risk assessment by the Croatian Food Agency, are taking legally prescribed measures.

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