ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Authorities in the Kurdistan Region have seized shipments of a banned veterinary drug allegedly used in a small number of poultry farms in Sulaimani province, as investigated in Rudaw's flagship program Lagal Ranj - “With Ranj” in Kurdish.
During Sunday’s episode, lead anchor Ranj Sangawi reported that the substance, identified as Furaltadone, had been imported in containers labeled “Super Max” and distributed to farms despite being prohibited by the Kurdistan Region's Ministry of Agriculture, according to a document obtained by Rudaw.
Furaltadone is a nitrofuran-class antibiotic that has been banned for use in food-producing animals in the United States and the European Union for decades because of evidence that its residues may be carcinogenic and mutagenic. International food safety authorities require zero tolerance for nitrofuran residues in meat and eggs intended for human consumption.
The Sulaimani-based Kurdistan Region's Security Agency (Asayish) confiscated the drug before chickens treated with it reached the market.
Karzan Sherko, spokesperson for the Asayish, told the program on Sunday that the chickens given the drug “were seized before they were put on the market,” adding that “the suspects - 16 people in total - have been arrested.”
The investigation reported that the drug was concealed in differently-labeled containers and passed through quality control procedures at the Kurdistan Region's border.
A veterinarian detained in connection with the case admitted using and distributing the drug.
“At first, I didn't realize it, but the second time when I found out, I told the poultry farm owner it was dangerous, but he said he would sell it. I used it and sold it myself,” he told Sangawi.
He added that pressure from the company owner influenced his actions. “I betrayed my profession and broke my oath,” he added, expressing remorse and stating that if released, he would not return to the work.
Another detainee, identified as the owner of a poultry medicine company, told Rudaw that they "brought two shipments and passed both of them; I don't know why they passed the inspection. It is banned if we don't change the bottles, but by God, I didn't know it was so harmful until I was arrested. They say it causes cancer in humans.”
He further claimed that the drug "is present in all major cities, districts, and sub-districts. There are also many other banned drugs."
Medical and food safety experts interviewed during the program warned of serious health risks.
“It has been proven in laboratories that it destroys DNA and is mutagenic.