Spanish cucumbers are not the cause of an E.coli outbreak linked to 16 fatalities and some 1,200 infections in Europe, German authorities conceded Tuesday.
But that admission, five days after Germany warned its citizens not to eat Spanish produce, has only deepened the mystery surrounding the virulent outbreak, centered in Germany, and has come too late for Spanish cucumber growers.
The industry now faces a plunge in sales that can take months or even years to recover from. Besides Germany and at least six European nations are not accepting Spanish produce. Germany is now threatening to extend th
e prohibition to the entire European Union.Spanish farms are laying off workers and losing some 200 million euros ($286 million) per week in lost sales. Spain's agriculture minister said her country will be asking for extraordinary compensation.
The bigger question remains unresolved: What caused the source of the virulent strain of bacteria, known as Shiga toxin-producing E.coli?
adapted from The Christian Science Monitor and Reuters
