ヨーロッパでは大腸菌O104の被害が広がる中、多くの農家が風評被害に苦しんでいます。
VOAの音声はこちらからどうぞ。
以下は要旨です。
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ドイツは6月10日にO104の感染源はモヤシなどのスプラウト（新芽野菜）であると発表しました。これを受けてロシアはEUが安全を保証することを条件にヨーロッパからの輸入制限を解除することを決めました。
5月下旬からヨーロッパでは0104による死者が最低でも30人、そして体調を崩した人はおよそ3000名にのぼるといいます。犠牲のほとんどはドイツ国内で発生しています。
当初はドイツ政府はスペインのキュウリが感染源であると疑い、多くの国がスペインからの輸入を停止しました。スペインの農業大臣はドイツの責任問題に言及しています。
感染源を早急に断定することにはEU内でも批判の声があります。医学的な解析が十分になされた後でなければ、逆に消費者や農業生産者の不安をあおる恐れがあるからです。
野菜が出荷できなくなった農家に対して、EUは損害額の3割にあたる170億円相当を予定していましたが、その後およそ250億円相当まで補償額を増やそうと検討しています。
ヨーロッパが現在直面しているのはギリシャの財政破綻問題もあります。EUは6兆円相当ものギリシャへの追加融資を検討しています。
ギリシャは危機を乗り越えるために新たな財政緊縮策を打ち出そうとしていますが、しかし何千人もの公務員がそれに対して反対運動を起こしています。
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ドイツの衛生当局によると、新芽野菜を食べた人の発症例は、食べなかった人の約９倍にのぼるということです。
しかし当初は「キュウリ、トマト、サラダ用の葉物野菜の食用は控えるように」と政府が呼びかけたために、いまだにこれらの野菜は売れず「1986年のチェルノブイリ原発事故以来の風評被害だ」という農家もいるほどです。
感染が早急に収束することを祈るばかりです。
Update: Health officials in Germany said Friday that bean sprouts caused the E. coli outbreak, as earlier suspected. The head of Germany’s disease control agency said the pattern of the outbreak pointed to the sprouts as the cause. After the announcement, Russia said it will lift its ban on European Union vegetables in return for EU safety guarantees. An earlier story follows.
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This is the VOA Special English Economics Report.
European agriculture ministers met in Luxembourg this week to discuss the spread of E. coli bacteria. E. coli infections have killed at least thirty people since late May. Nearly three thousand others were sickened. Most of the victims were in Germany.
At first, German officials suggested that cucumbers from Spain were to blame. Russia and other countries quickly banned vegetable imports from Spain and other European countries.
(SOUND)
The Spanish agriculture minister, Rosa Aguilar, demanded that Germany pay for her country’s losses.
John Dalli of Malta is the European Union’s commissioner for health and consumer policy. He spoke this week about the risk of passing judgment too soon.
JOHN DALLI: “It is crucial that national authorities do not rush to give information on source of infection which is not proven by bacteriological analysis, as this spreads unjustified fears in the population all over Europe, and creates problems for our food producers selling products in the EU and outside of the EU.”
Russia has refused to end its ban on European vegetables. Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said his country will not lift the ban until the EU provides details about the source of the infections. Some critics say Russia is using the issue to gain entry to the World Trade Organization. Russia is the largest economy without WTO membership.
Earlier this week, EU Farm Commissioner Dacian Ciolos proposed farm aid of two hundred twenty million dollars. The goal was to help European farmers recover at least fifty percent of their losses. By Wednesday, Mr. Ciolos had raised the amount to over three hundred million dollars. EU officials estimate the bacterial outbreak has cost farmers millions of dollars.
But that is not the only issue troubling Europe. European governments and the International Monetary Fund are considering as much as sixty-five billion dollars in new loans to Greece. Greek debt continues to drop in value as some officials now admit that earlier rescue loans were not enough.
This week, the Greek cabinet approved measures to cut budget deficits. But thousands of government workers protested the planned cuts on Thursday.
(SOUND)
Separately, French Finance Minster Christine Lagarde is continuing her campaign to become the next head of the IMF. She visited China this week after traveling to India. Mexican central bank chief Agustin Carstens also wants the job. He is seeking to become the first non-European to lead the international lender.
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