Romania Destroys Contaminated Potatoes from Egypt

Romanian authorities have destroyed 1,100 kg of Egyptian potatoes after tests confirmed they were contaminated with brown rot disease, the Associated Press reports. The affected potatoes, which can contaminate water and soil, could have had an “extremely severe” economic impact if they infested water supplies, according to Romania’s agriculture ministry. This is the second Egyptian potato shipment to test positive for brown rot, after Russia’s agricultural quarantine authorities flagged two shipments last month, claiming they were contaminated. The Agriculture Ministry came out with a statement saying it would investigate the farms where the shipments came from and warned it may ban those exporters from selling goods abroad.