The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has ordered inspections of beef imported from Brazil following reports that a growth hormone was detected in meat shipped to the European Union, Deputy Agriculture Minister Małgorzata Gromadzka announced on Monday. Yesterday, we reported on thousands of kilograms of beef contaminated with estradiol that were not intercepted by the EU system and entered distribution.
“In connection with reports of the detection of estradiol (a growth hormone) in batches of Brazilian beef imported into the EU, we have ordered urgent inspections by the relevant authorities. We are monitoring the inflow of products into Poland and verifying all signals. At this stage, there is no information indicating that the specified batches have reached the Polish market. We are acting preventively to ensure full food safety,” Gromadzka wrote on the X platform.
In January, Agriculture Minister Stefan Krajewski stated that a solution was being prepared to enable the monitoring and blocking of products from outside the EU that do not meet required standards. He added that the application submitted to the European Commission in this matter is a parallel action to the complaint filed with the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) regarding the EU–Mercosur agreement.
As we reported on Sunday, Brazilian beef contaminated with estradiol was detected by the Dutch Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority.
The case concerns four contaminated shipments, totaling 62,781 kilograms of meat, imported by two European companies. Part of the meat has already entered distribution and subsequently the market. According to a report by the organization FoodHolland, approximately 5,000 kilograms of chilled beef reached retail outlets and were likely consumed, as official warnings were issued only after the product’s expiration date in October 2025.