Belgium Agrees To Test Food

Belgium reluctantly backed away from a conflict with the European Union on Monday and pledged to comply with EU demands for strict new tests on food exports to ensure they are not contaminated by cancer-causing dioxin.

The decision to submit all food exports with more than 2 percent animal fat -- including waffles and mayonnaise as well as almost all meats -- to the costly and time-consuming tests reverses the position Belgium took over the weekend.

On Saturday, Health Minister Magda Aelvoet said Belgium would defy the EU and apply the tests only to exports with fat content above 20 percent. It was a statement that put the country on a collision course with the European authorities.

Monday, after government officials held talks with the European Commission and industry representatives, Aelvoet backed down.

"The message from the food industry is very clear. We risk a total embargo if we don't follow EU rules," she told reporters.

Belgium intends to appeal to the European Court of Justice. However, pending a ruling from the court, Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt has promised to abide by the regulations.

Belgium has been wracked by dioxin contamination fears since May, when the government announced that high levels of the cancer-causing chemical had been discovered in eggs, meat and dairy products. The fear led to a wide range of products being pulled from supermarket shelves and international bans on Belgian food.

Although the Belgian government said it had traced the source of the scare to one supplier of fats used in animal feed, fears emerged last month that the contamination may be more widespread.

Under pressure from the EU, Belgium has agreed to tighten tests on livestock, meat and dairy products so only those certified as dioxin free will be eligible for export.