Justice James Bovell-Drakes yesterday in Chambers ordered that the 946.68 metric tonnes of bulk soybean meal be released from the vessel Myra under supervision into the warehouse of plaintiff Didco Trading Company Limited. The vessel is currently moored in the Demerara River.
The Ministry of Agriculture on March 13 issued a release calling for the soybean meal on board the Myra not to be off loaded, after receiving information from Guadeloupe, the Myra’s last port of call, that the soybean meal was contaminated with Salmonella typhiumrium. The Public Health Authorities had been told on Monday by Justice Bovell-Drakes to have the cargo tested and to report to the court at 3 pm yesterday on the findings. There was no report by the authority yesterday.
The judge’s order yesterday mandates that the cargo be stored in the plaintiff’s warehouse under the supervision of the Customs and Trade Administration and Ministry of Agriculture. Samples of the said cargo were also ordered to be extracted for analysis by the Public Health Authorities to determine whether the cargo has been contaminated with salmonella or any other bacteria thereby rendering it unfit for consumption.
In the event of the cargo being found to be contaminated with salmonella or any other bacteria, the said cargo would forthwith be destroyed or removed out of the jurisdiction of Guyana, the judge ordered. Costs for the analysis of the cargo and for its destruction and/or removal out of Guyana, if necessary, would be borne solely by the plaintiff. A stay of execution was also refused and the matter was ordered to take its normal course.
This order yesterday rescinded earlier orders on March 11 by Justice B.S. Roy for the defendant to permit the plaintiff to take delivery of the soya to its warehouse and a later order on March 21 by Justice Bovell-Drakes that called for the cargo to be stored in the warehouse of the plaintiff also under the Customs and Ministry of Agriculture supervision.
It was revealed that the soybean meal was originally imported from Brazil by France and a portion of the soya was later exported to Guadeloupe for use there along with corn and wheat. However, according to a test conducted in France at one facility that had 5,000 tonnes it was suspected to have salmonella and a warning was sent to Guadeloupe by France.
Didco, through a broker, made arrangements to buy the soybean meal, after Guadeloupe refused it.
