THE government and the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) ave recalled all pork products from pigs produced in the Republic following the discovery of dioxins in animals at several farms.

The decision to withdraw the products was made last night after laboratory tests confirmed yesterday that dioxins were present in pigs and animal feed at the farms.

At a press conference at Government Buildings last night, agriculture minister Brendan Smith said the dioxins had been found in animals at both pig and beef farms.

He said the inquiries centred on one supplier of animal feeds after an industrial pollutant was discovered in the carcasses of pigs. It is believed that the supplier in question is located in the south east of the country. The minister added that his department had restricted the movement of animals at the farms and were carrying out further testing.

During standard health and safety checks Department of Agriculture inspectors discovered Polychlorinated Biphenyls (BCPs) in slaughtered pigs in a number of farms around the area that had been supplied with the feed.

Alan Reilly of the FSAI said they were withdrawing the pork on a "precautionary basis".

He said the levels of dioxins detected in the feed were "very high" and the levels in the pork itself were "80 to 200 hundred times" above safe limits. In addition, he said the FSAI was recalling all pork products that were produced from the start of September.

The Chief Medical Officer, Tony Holohan, advised people to dispose of any pork products in their homes.

However, he said that anyone who had consumed Irish pork products recently should not worry because the animals had been only exposed to the dioxins for "a reasonably short period of time".

"Consistent exposure over a long period of time would have an effect on a range of different functions and organ systems, but the exposure we are talking about in this situation is a reasonably short period of time and not the kind of exposure where we would expect to see health effects that can occur from chronic, longterm exposure to dioxins," he added.

The recall involves retailers, the hospitality sector and the Irish Pig processing sector.