Pasta mill head arrested, wheat stocks alleged to be contaminated
makers are checking their supplies to see whether any came from a
stock found to be contaminated with a cancer-causing toxin.
Francesco Casillo, the head of Molino Casillo, was arrested for allegedly adulterating stocks with contaminated wheat after a joint investigation by Italy's agricultural ministry and the fraud police.
The arrest follows the discovery that wheat imported from Canada was contaminated with ocratoxin, a carcinogenic substance. About 58,000 tonnes of durum wheat was confiscated at the port of Bari.
A statement by the minister of agriculture, Gianni Alemanno, says the case shows the need for stricter controls on tracing and tracking food imports. He said it also proved that Italy's system of safety inspections and tests was helping to keep contaminated food off the shelves.
"Once more foreign products have presented the greatest risk of counterfeiting and fraud, an episode that confirms the necessity of reinforcing label of origin guarantees on food products, to increase the protection both of consumers and producers who invest in quality," he stated in a press release today.
The ministry said Casillo had been arrested by customs police, who carried out an arrest warrant for a charge of tampering and counterfeiting of foodstuffs, as well as poisoning of foodstuffs.
The arrest warrant was issued by the preliminary investigative judge Michele Nardi. The judge is investigating the import from Canada of grain contaminated with cancer-causing toxins, which was shown to be over legal limits on an load seized last September onboard a ship in the port of Bari, according to a statement translated by AGI Online on behalf of the Italian government.
Italy's family-owned Molino Casillo is a group of four mills situated in southern Italy. The company says it is the European leader in the production of semolina for pasta and is the world's largest private buyer of durum wheat.
Molino Casillo buys about one million tonnes of durum wheat a year. and is one of the principal market makers in durum wheat and semolina.
A company spokesperson refused to speak to the media after contacted by FoodProductionDaily.com. He said someone would be available for comment this afternoon.
World production of durum wheat is forecast to fall to 35.4 million tonnes for the 2004 to 2005 growing season, down 5.8 million tonnes from the previous season.
Canada, one of the world's largest producers of durum wheat, sells about 40 per cent of its supply to Italy, according tow AWB Consultancy.
Italy's production the previous growing season fell by 33 per cent and is forecast to be unchanged or possibly lower this season, AWB stated.
Ocratoxin is produced by several fungi and occurs naturally in a variety of plant products such as cereals, coffee beans, beans, pulses and dried fruit.
It has been detected also in products such as coffee, wine, beer and grape juice.
Its presence depends on climatic conditions, abnormally long storage, transportation, wet or dry milling, roasting procedures and fermentation.
High concentrations in foods have been linked with damage to kidney function.
