Austria’s dairy is safe, says VÖM

Austrian Dairy Association VÖM has come forward to assure the public that a scandal with the neurotoxin hexachlorobenzene (HCB) from a cement plant found at a few Austrian dairy farms is not a general problem and that the dairies have the situation under control.

“Austria’s milk is safe; there can be no doubt about it. But the latest incident in connection with an improper disposal of contaminated waste at a site by a cement plant has shown shortcomings. The disposal of toxic industrial waste and lack of regulatory control activities have drawn the dairy industry in this region into disrepute. The dairies do in any case everything possible to ensure the high Austrian quality and food safety,” underlines director and VÖM-president Helmut Petschar (pictured). He continues, “We expect the authorities and the industry to show a responsible approach towards the environment and we oppose in the strongest terms to have an environmental scandal become a milk scandal.”

Petschar used the opportunity to state that milk is a high quality food because of its excellent nutritional properties. He made the point that milk from Austria is something special from a quality point of view. Austria’s milk is unique, as it is 100% GMO-free and more than 75% of it comes from the mountain and less favoured areas. It is produced under the strictest environmental and animal protection legislation in small and medium farms and it is subject to stringent quality controls – from production to the shelf. There are also many special types of milk, be it hay milk, mountain milk or organic meadow milk.

Finally, underlines the dairy organisation president, the milk is processed in the Austrian dairies with great care to high-quality consumer-ready foods with the highest standards and this is ensured, among other things, by the Austrian Food Codex and the AMA quality label.

Petschar states that the high potential of the Austrian milk is also well received abroad, as 48% of Austrian milk (almost every second litre) is now exported.