CAIRO: The Prosecutor General’s office in Daqahalia governorate announced on Saturday its decision to eliminate parts of a Russian wheat shipment which was stored by the Central Administration for Seed Certification.
After testing, the Ministry of Health found that the wheat is not fit for human consumption. However, it had already been distributed to nine governorates, where the wheat was recalled and kept in storage until a final decision was issued by the public prosecutor.
Responding to the recent announcement, Muslim Brotherhood MPs Tarek Kotb and Ibrahim Abou Ouf filed an investigation request at the People’s Assembly regarding the fate of the rest of the shipment, which is currently in storage by the Central Administration for Seed Certification.
“We are demanding an answer from the officials responsible regarding the destiny of this poisonous wheat, said Kotb.
The General Directorate for the Investigation of Supplies in a case initiated last May regarding the import of a shipment of bad Russian wheat that was seized by the General Authority for Imports and Exports Control at Safaga Port after test results deemed it unfit for human consumption.
The agricultural quarantine and the Weed Research Institute at the Ministry of Agriculture tested the shipment and reported that it contains high levels of weed and insects, rendering it contrary to food health standards.
The recent shipment, approximately 63,000 tons, cost around LE 60 million and is the first wheat shipment to arrive at Safaga Port after Prosecutor General Abdel Meguid Mahmoud had ordered the seizure of all wheat imported from Russia last May because citing quality concerns.
“There have been numerous investigation requests filed at the PA regarding the wheat imported from countries such as Russia and the Ukraine as it has been scientifically proven that it is cancerous and not fit for humans. However, the government hasn’t responded to any [requests], said MP Gamal Zahran, the official spokesman of the independent bloc at the PA.
He alleged that shipments would be rejected at one port but would enter through another.
Egypt, the world’s largest wheat importer, said in December it was looking to increase Russian wheat imports and to attract Russian investment to help build silos, according to Reuters.
