Today there are almost countless food products that we can consume, from the most elaborate to the most natural. Although it is not usual, when taking them we may be exposed to health threats, derived from products in poor condition or in conditions unfit for human consumption.
This is what has happened with a product that, a priori, may seem innocuous. It is flour, specifically whole rye flour. As reported by the Spanish Agency for Food Safety and Nutrition (AESAN) through its Twitter account, it has detected a batch of this product not suitable for consumption.
The brand of the affected rye flour is BIOGRÀ and, according to reports, the lot number belonging to the product concerned is on 21-005️and its best before date is May 30 of this year.
⚠️ Alert for the presence of ergot alkaloids in whole rye flour.
???? Do not consume
▶️ Name: Whole wheat rye flour
▶️ Brand: BIOGRÀ
▶️ N° Lote: 21-005
▶️ Best before date: 05/30/2023???? https://t.co/HuJ3MZ545b pic.twitter.com/e2cLjrssue
— AESAN (@AESAN_gob_es) March 31, 2023
As can be seen in the images that accompany the AESAN Twitter post, the packet in question is transparentand the label consists of brown tones with the pertinent information, in addition to the logo in green.
As detailed by AESAN on its website, “the initial distribution has been to the autonomous communities of Valencian Community, Castilla-La Mancha, Balearic Islands, Galicia, Andalusia, Canary Islands, Castilla y León, Community of Madrid, La Rioja, Basque Country and Cataloniaalthough it is not ruled out that there may be redistributions to other autonomous communities.
They ask not to consume it and if it has been made to go to the doctor
The information on the lots affected and distributed has already been communicated to the competent authorities, and those who have it in their homes are asked to remove it immediately and do not consume it.
In the event that this food has already been ingested, they advise go to a health center if any symptoms associated with ergotism are identifieda poisoning that can have serious consequences.
As detailed by AESAN, the threatening substances present in these batches of flour are called ergot alkaloids. “They are produced by different fungi of the orders Hypocreales and Eurotiales. Within the first, Claviceps purpurea is the most widespread fungus in Europe and infects grains of rye, wheat, barley, millet and oatsamong other cereals.
The possible poisoning by Claviceps purpurea present in cereals is called ‘ergotism’, also known in antiquity as ‘Fire of San Antonio‘, whose symptoms have been exposed in the previous list.