BELGIAN CIVIL DEFENCE MEMBER ARRANGES PACKAGES OF CHICKEN MEAT, 1999-06-05 (photo)

A Belgian Civil Defence member arranges packages of chicken meat, suspected of being contaminated with poisonous dioxin, in crates on a truck near Bruges, western Belgium, June 5. The unwanted produce will be driven to a warehouse from where it will go to an incinerator for destruction. Municipal dump sites began receiving tainted eggs, chicken, and other meats which consumers no longer considered fit to eat as they feared they would be polluted with dioxin in animal feed. The Belgian government has halted sales of chicken, eggs and related products and banned the slaughter of livestock for three days while it investigates where exactly the contaminated feed was used. High-fat beef and pork products are being taken out of circulation as another preventative measure, although so far dioxin has only been found in chicken and eggs. BEN/NAA/FMS