Do you live in the Île-de-France region and have you got into the habit of eating eggs from your own chicken coop? Please note: this Wednesday, April 19, 2023, the Regional Health Agency (ARS) published a press release in which it recommends “the non-consumption of eggs and animal products from uncontrolled domestic production, throughout the Ile-de-France region“.
Indeed: following an alert given in February 2022 by the 3R collective (a group of associations in favor of zero waste), the ARS Île-de-France took samples from 25 domestic chicken coops in the region: among them , 14 were located near the three main waste incinerators around Paris (Ivry-sur-Seine, Issy-Les-Moulineaux, Saint-Ouen).
Verdict? “The results of the study conducted by the Agency show contamination of all the samples by the three families of persistent organic pollutants analyzed (dioxins, furans and PCBs).“More surprising no doubt: among the 25 sites analysed, 2 had very high levels of PCBs (40 to 50 times higher than the regulatory maximum), and they were located more than 3 kilometers from an incinerator.
Molecules that may have long-term health effects
THE dioxins and the furans result from the combustion of waste (incineration of household waste, burning of green waste, etc.) and certain industrial processes (bleaching of paper pulp, for example). THE pcbfor their part, are now prohibited in France: their presence in the environment is therefore mainly linked to old uses in urban areas (adhesives, oils, paints, etc.) and to accidental pollution (an oil leak in a electrical transformer, for example).
Why is this a problem? As the ARS explains, “these molecules will accumulate after ingestion in the fatty tissues thus contaminating meat, fish, shellfish, milk and dairy products and eggs rich in fat“.
Gold, “regular consumption of foods contaminated with dioxins and PCBs can have long-term health effects, such as an increased risk of cancer, fertility disorders, metabolic effects such as diabetes for example and endocrine disruptors. There is no treatment to remove these substances from the body.“
“Awaiting final analysis“, so it is best to refrain from eating these potentially contaminated eggs!
Source :Regional Health Agency (ARS)
