The Dutch food safety authority has recalled red beet sprouts after it found that samples were contaminated with a strain of E. coli bacteria.

The beet sprouts were grown by Dutch company Hamu. A spokesperson from the food safety authority, VWA, told just-food today (10 June) that the sprouts were exported to Germany and Belgium.

The authority yesterday confirmed that the beet sprouts do not contain the same bacteria that caused the recent E.coli outbreak in Germany, and that it is continuing to investigate the strain and how dangerous it is.

The VWA said that there have been no reports of illness so far, and that all people in the Netherlands who became ill with E.coli related illnesses were part of the German outbreak.